Kriminalist II
by narni4eva
Summary: Matt and Mello return in the sequel to Kriminalist; but what new threat hangs over their lives? Detective work, suspense, romance, humour, and a good deal more await you.
1. A Lesson in the Past: Malediction

**KRIMINALIST II**

A/N: This is the sequel to my first AU Death Note fic, Kriminalist. Please, if you haven't read that, do so now - the story won't make so much sense for you otherwise!

This time around requires a certain amount of your help. First in being patient with me (it's taken me about six months to even find the time to begin this), and second in giving me some input. At the end of Kriminalist I, some people were kind enough to volunteer a word for me to use as a chapter heading. Each chapter will then have something to do with that word - so you can really affect how the story goes! There are no rules or regulations, so just go ahead and suggest whatever comes to mind. The first word, malediction, was submitted by the ever-helpful Svadilfari.

As before, the fic will run in "lesson" files; and so, without further ado, here is the first chapter of Kriminalist II.

* * *

**A LESSON IN THE PAST**

* * *

Chapter One: Malediction

MELLO

It's great, being in LA. Really, really great.

It's been a while since Kira died, and L, and I've almost come to terms with it all. We've been working here for two years now, Matt and I. It's the anniversary today. It's still hard for me to think of Near - we don't talk - but I'm successful in my own right now. I may not have caught Kira… but I did catch the infamous Little Tokyo bath murderer, not to mention Albert "Anaheim" Rogers and his crime syndicate. They're all behind bars now, thanks to me. There's more than one evil person out there in the world. Kira wasn't the be-all and end-all we thought he was.

With Matt by my side things are better than ever. It's onwards and upwards, always onwards and upwards. I cut down to one bar of chocolate a week (on Saturdays). Matt only smokes on Saturdays, too. It's like we've calmed down now that we've found our place in the world. Although, when I say calmed down…

"MOTHERFUCKER!!" Matt screams from down the corridor, in his games room. This outburst is accompanied by what I can only describe as 'loser' music: the theme that gets played when you get slayed, as Matt would put it. I wander down to see what's going on; leaning in the doorway I can afford the smirk that lingers on my face.

"Seriously, Matt." I say. "You can't even beat that dwarf guy?"

"Yeah, well, sorry Mr Games Genius, I didn't realise you were such a pro." Matt sniffs. "Why don't you show me how it's done?"

"I think I'll pass." I reply. "These things are always so much more rewarding when you figure them out for yourself. And besides… I can think of a much better game to play."

"Oh, is that so?" Matt asks, tilting his head to look up at me properly. "Please, do tell."

"It involves you, me, that motorbike out there, and that little place in the woods out near Paradise Springs."

Matt raises an eyebrow. "You mean those woods that are snowy at this time of year?"

"Oh, yeah." I smirk. "Why, chicken?"

"Absolutely not." Matt replies, standing up. "I'm just worried about you… you do realise that the cold makes certain things look _even smaller_ than they are, right?"

"Matt, honey," I purr, "If it's really that small, then I'm sure you won't mind me being on top."

"Do I get to smoke?"

"If I get to bring chocolate."

"Well…" Matt grins. "Hell, it's not every day that you've lived in LA for exactly two years. Let's go."

We gather up a few supplies, and leave straight away. I don't really think about it much, but the way we live now is liberating. We used to have people following us around everywhere, Roger and Wammy and the rest of them, and if we wanted to leave Wammy's House we'd have to wait for the next field trip. Well, unless we happened to be grounded for setting off fireworks in the caretaker's office. Which I never did. Obviously.

But now we do what we want, when we want. We don't need to worry about expense; we're rich. Matt's business and the Kriminalist reputation has seen to that. We only get the most high-profile cases these days, the ones worth the real money. We don't have servants or anything like that… well, we have a cleaner, but she only comes in once a week. On Sundays. She clears up Matt's cigarette butts and my chocolate wrappers with the same tired air of disapproval. She makes me laugh.

I walk to the bike and get on first, tucking my hair into my collar so that it will all fit neatly inside the helmet. Matt gets on behind me and puts his hands on my hips, holding on tightly. It's one of the perks of having a motorbike. I start the engine and we go, tracing familiar tarmac all the way up the mountain. It's good to live on the outskirts of town; traffic isn't as bad, especially later during the day, so we can make good time. The rush of wind and the feel of Matt's hands on my hips are all part of what I live for. Maybe I've mellowed a little (Ha! Mellow Mello), but I still know where to find the best kicks.

* * *

MATT

Everything seems like a good idea when you start. Hey, I said, I'm not afraid of snow. Hell, I _like_ snow. In fact, snow is the best thing on this earth except for gaming, cigarettes, and Mello - let's go enjoy the snow! Yeah, that's me, Mail Jeevas, snow lover. Or in other words, idiot.

"Fuck, Mello, it's cold." I shiver, and Mello laughs teasingly.

"Aww, little Matty's cold? I thought you said you could handle it?" He mocks, lifting his head to grin at me. He's lying naked in snow and he doesn't even look cold. His blue eyes and his blond hair make him look like some kind of ice queen. I think he's enjoying it. I'm freezing to death, though.

"I did handle it. Quite well, actually. But now I'd like to not catch pneumonia, please."

Mello laughs even more, and pushes himself up to a kneeling position. "Come on then. Let's get dressed and go."

"Go? Not yet! I haven't had my cigarette."

"Ah, good point." Mello reaches over to his jacket pocket and pulls out a chocolate bar, unwrapping it with one hand as he dresses with the other. I can't help but admire his figure as he stretches up to pull his shirt over his head. He's thin, but not skinny, and the muscles on his arms are strong. It's then that I realise the way he was sitting; there had been something in the back of my mind telling me it was odd, but it's only when he covers it up that I realise. The scar tissue on his left side is almost purple in the cold. He was laying on his right side, protecting it from touching the snow. It must be sensitive. Without thinking, almost, I reach up a hand and smooth over the scar on his face, the texture I've grown to know so well.

"It's hard to believe it's over two years since that bastard…" He says, looking a little distant.

"Kira?"

"Yeah." Mello sighs, and looks out into the trees, away from me. "I still… dream sometimes, of how it would have been if we'd caught him and not Near. If we had taken on L's name. I always just wanted… a little revenge. I wanted him to pay for fucking up my face like that. I was proud of my looks…"

"You still have them." I assure him, quickly kissing him on the nose. "You're gorgeous, Mells. People can't take their eyes off you when you walk into a room."

"Yeah, because I'm a freak." Mello scoffs, and brushes his hair out of his eyes impatiently. "Whenever I think of that bastard I feel so angry. I don't mind so much about Near any more, and although I miss L I know he's not coming back… but Kira…"

"Feels like he might show up at any moment, doesn't it?" I sigh. "He always had another trick up his sleeve."

"I just keep thinking about those creepy-ass messages Near found."

I nod. It always comes back to this. A while ago Near was clearing out the old HQ building, apparently to make more room for his toys, and he found an envelope containing three sheets of paper. Each of them was addressed to one of us, using our codenames, with a little message from Kira. I'll never forget what was written on mine. "This is not game over." I read Mello's too - "Each bite brings you closer to death" - and I know he was freaked out by it enough to lower his chocolate consumption rate considerably. We never got to read Near's. It was probably just another idle threat; after all is said and done that guy is in his grave. You don't get the chance to try again, not in this world.

"Look, Mells… Just try to forget about it. I know it's not as easy as all that, but we have to move on. One day you'll look in the mirror and see those scars and not think of him, I swear to you."

After a moment, Mello turns back to me with a dreamy half-smile. "Who will I think of instead?"

"Me." I promise. "Just you wait."

After a while we get back on the bike and go, leaving behind nothing but two body-shaped melt holes in the thin covering of snow between the trees. Aside from these little remembrances, life is good. Today is an anniversary day, so things are allowed to be weird. It's not like the anniversaries of Kira's death or L's, when we tiptoe around and evade the subject, jumping at shadows and avoiding each others' eyes; there are times when we can talk about it. Sometimes I almost forget, now that things are good. It's hard to believe life was ever any different to this.

* * *

MELLO

It creeps me out sometimes, thinking of that weirdo and his obsession with justice. How could anyone so clever think of killing so many people? I guess I'll never know, and it's not like I could just walk up and ask him. Like Matt says, he's in the ground; I just can't shake the feeling sometimes that when I turn around, he'll be behind me.

I feel it more than ever today. All the ride home I'm inexplicably nervous. I feel like something is going to drive up, a car or a truck, and push us off the road. Nothing does, but I only start to relax when I've parked the bike and taken off my helmet.

When we get inside the routine is so well-practiced we could do it with our eyes closed: I put the leathers away, Matt goes and turns on the computer system. I check the answering machine, he checks the emails. Today the light on the machine is flashing. I press the button.

"You have - one - new message." The disjointed voice from the machine tells me. "This is - new - message - one."

There is a brief pause; someone takes a breath. What follows is in Japanese, but I recognise the voice all too well.

"Hello, Matt, Mello. This is N speaking. I am at the Japan headquarters. We are facing a new threat. The current investigation team have deemed it necessary to invite you to help us. This is an international crisis, potentially endangering the entire world. We await your answer."

The heavy beep at the end of the message makes my scowl deepen. "Fucker." I mutter.

"Did you hear that?" Matt asks. I look up to see him standing in the doorway, leaning on the frame. "What he was saying?"

"Of course I did, I'm right next to the machine." I snap slightly, not at him but at the fact that Near has once again butted his girly little voice into our lives.

"No, I mean…" Matt smiles. "He doesn't want us there. The 'investigation team' have asked for us… which means they don't trust in his abilities. Mello, do you know what this is?"

"What?" I ask, as he sidles up to me, slipping one arm around my waist.

"This is our chance to really, _really _annoy Near." He grins. After a few moments I grin too, and we gradually break into progressive sniggers, and then cackles, and then full-on laughter.

I hope Near realises what's coming to him.

* * *

A/N: If anyone who lives in or near LA would like to correct me on geographical points or help me out with more details of the area, I'd appreciate it, since I'm doing this only by the power of Google Maps. They obviously won't be in LA for long, but it just is something I'd like to check for accuracy.

Please review, and don't forget to include a word suggestion if you have one :)


	2. A Lesson in the Past: Tenterhooks

A/N: Here we are then, in chapter two, waiting for some answers from Near. I have to say it's been fun getting back into this AU world again! I should be operating on a once-a-fortnight schedule for the duration of this fic. This chapter's word, tenterhooks, was also provided by Svadilfari.

* * *

Chapter Two: Tenterhooks

MATT

The funny thing about Mello and Near is… well, actually, there are two funny things. The two funny things about Near and Mello are that, first of all, they think they're so totally different, when actually they both think in the same way, the way that L taught them; and secondly that they both hate each other so much that they lose all sense of subtlety when dealing with each other. Near gives us 'cryptic' easy-to-read messages, while Mello would probably like to punch him in the face. And the only one who can see it is me.

Of course, Mello would probably shoot me if I told him that.

Not fatally; I mean he would just shoot me in the foot or something. He'd feel really bad about it afterwards. But I think it would make him just angry enough to do it without thinking. That's how much he hates Near. So I'm thinking that this trip is going to be very… interesting. I'll probably have my hands full with keeping Mello calm. At least Near doesn't know our real names.

I worry about that, sometimes. I know Kira isn't around any more but there are other ways to use a name. Mello wouldn't ever tell them my real name, I know he wouldn't, just because he's tough enough and he would probably rather die than give _anything_ to Near, or let a criminal win. But I'm not that strong. I think if they threatened Mells I would have to tell them. No matter how much I didn't want to; I'm the weak link in the chain. I worry that one day, Mello will be hurt or ruined because of me.

But in this day and age it's hard to believe Near would want or need our names. The only reason he would try to find them out would be to lord it over them that he was a better detective, and he'd already done that by catching Kira. Light Yagami. Halfway through packing I pause to shake my head and sigh, remembering those old days. We were younger then and not so aware of how the world works. Now we know, we've done it all on our own and we've become a success, while Near sat in his tower watching his minions work for him. What does he know of the real world? Of making friends and falling in love, and business deals? He may have won that case, but I think we know who benefited most in the end.

And if Near needs our help on a case, then… that must mean even his people know we're better than him now.

I wonder how Mello will handle it, though. It's true that he's calmed down a bit lately, but the old Mello is still inside, just waiting for a chance to pull a gun and take over again. I don't mind. I can deal with his crazy side just as well as I can this side of him, this loving side that I know I've been instrumental in bringing out. He's still as hard as nails where it comes to criminals; if they even try to mess with him they soon realise their mistake. About three months ago we got a death threat from a Mafioso. That night Mello went out on his bike while I was asleep, broke into the guy's house, put a gun to his head, and managed to produce enough evidence to not only have him convicted, but clear himself of the breaking and entering charges.

You don't mess with Mihael Keehl. And I guess, for the first time, Near is really going to figure that out.

* * *

MELLO

Matt's so enthusiastic about everything, he thinks nothing of getting on a plane and heading right back to Japan. It's been two years. That sounds like a long time but it's not. It's not a long time at all. It's far too short.

I still remember that hotel room. That shower. The feeling of defeat. I don't think Matt realises how hard it is for me to even think about going back.

But looking into his face, I feel a fire kindled inside me. An old fire that I recognise. A fire that says I will not back down and allow myself to be beaten, and that Near will be made to suffer for even thinking of going up against me. There's a word in my heart and it's _revenge_.

So we get our bags together, packing clothes and chocolate and cigarettes (though only for emergencies, we tell each other). Then Matt goes into his little computer nerd-out room and sets up a secure conversation line to Near, using webcam, microphone and speakers, like L used to. Some things never change.

"Hello, Near?" Matt says as I lean over the chair behind him, feeling a little edgy. The screen on the other side is blank, and for a few seconds it seems it will stay that way; but then the picture flickers into life and there's Near, looking at us with his fucking creepy little L-reincarnated eyes and twirling his hair. There are some things I wish I _could_ change.

"Matt. Mello." Near acknowledges, his blank stare flicking between us. "You wish to give me your answer."

Not a question. A statement. Already I want to rip his head off for being so damn know-it-all.

"Yes." Matt replies calmly. I wonder if he feels the same irritation I do, or if I'm just overreacting. It's not easy facing up to your rival without finding a million things to hate.

"That is your answer?"

"A few questions first, Near." I cut in.

"Of course, Mello." The stare flicks back to me. "What is it that you would like to know."

Again with the statement. Out of view of the webcam I clench my fists. "We'd like to know exactly what is going on."

"I cannot tell you in anything but person."

"This is a secure line, Near." Matt points out.

"Which you are no doubt recording for later analysis. This makes it very simple to steal. Please do not try to negotiate. I cannot reveal the details until we are face to face."

"How important is this?" I ask. "And how long have you been investigating?"

"It is of the utmost importance. We have been investigating for one month, almost exactly. Mello…" Near shifts a little, and leans in. "I can tell you one thing. This case is of equal, or possibly more, difficulty than the Kira case. The best minds in Japan are working on it and it is not enough."

"Perhaps that's because the best minds in Japan aren't there yet." I smirk. "We're on the next flight from LAX. Check your airport schedules."

In perfect synchronicity with my own intentions, Matt reaches up and cuts off the link. I pat him on the shoulder and move away, lost in thought, but knowing that we just got one-up on Near, despite his holier-than-thou tone. While he wastes time trying to figure out what airport we're flying to and which flight we're on so he can keep us in sight, we have time to finish our preparations and get our thoughts together.

So, Near's preferring to keep us in the dark; but that's fine. We're used to figuring out things our own way, and this case will be no exception. We're a good team, Matt and I. No, we're an exceptional team. I don't think Near realises yet just how exceptional we've become. He doesn't stand a chance.

We jump in the car and head down to the airport, having made arrangements for the bike and some of our technological equipment to be transported soon after our flight. We're going to need everything we've worked hard to buy if we're going to beat Near this time. He better be ready for the fight of his life.

* * *

A/N: Thanks to those who reviewed the last chapter, and for staying for chapter two. The only way is up :) Please don't forget to keep those reviews and word suggestions coming in!

Oh, and Happy New Year :)


	3. Lesson in Getting What You Want: Fiefdom

A/N: Thanks again to all who have reviewed, favourited, or added this story to their alerts. Your support is much appreciated! It's so hard to keep this on a once-every-two weeks schedule, when I have it written in advance - but I know if I did it once a week I wouldn't be able to keep up -_- I also, in this chapter, have my first time ever using the other SPK members, so forgive me if I fail a little at first ^^; Please also bear in mind that since this is AU, the bonus chapter of Death Note does not and will not happen. This chapter's title comes from a suggestion by jjwitdaheydiddydiddy, and begins the second lesson.

* * *

**A LESSON IN GETTING WHAT YOU WANT**

* * *

Chapter Three: Fiefdom

MELLO

When we reach the HQ I can feel the nerves in the pit of my stomach going crazy. Here it is, once again: that building that dominated our lives. The place where the investigation was carried out, the place where Light Bastard Yagami did his work… the place where L died. Now, Near's domain. Or 'N', as he enjoys calling himself. Ridiculous. Maybe that's why me and Matt could never live there - two 'M's, you see. It would be hard to tell us apart. _Seriously_, what is he, a preschooler? He's a fucking joke.

We take the lift up to the floor he's using as an office. The place is full of cards, all arranged as card houses, some taller than me. What the hell is he doing with his time? He's supposed to be a _detective_, not an overpaid child. None of us are allowed to be children. We never have been, that's not our purpose. As L's heirs, we're supposed to be mature and think things through. If this is what Near has been spending his time on, I'm starting to feel a bit more confident.

Then we get to the room. I get this feeling in my gut like we're not supposed to go in. I go in anyway.

"Hello, Mello." Near is standing in the exact middle of the room, surrounded by cards. He's twirling his silver hair round one finger, with a ridiculously childish smile. His big, blank eyes flick across to Matt, greeting him second. "Matt."

I'm just about to think of some kind of insult to reply with, my hands already curling into fists, when Matt brushes past me and then him to look around the room.

"Yeah, hi, Near." He says casually, picking up a card from the top of a tower. I see Near flinch slightly. Score Matt one, Near nil.

"So what's the deal?" I ask, calmed by Matt's calmness. "You've got some kind of case for us?"

"Well, to tell you the truth," Near begins, still twirling and _twirling_ his hair, "I brought you here to be safer."

"Safer?!" I splutter, taken aback. "From what? The Los Angeles Little Tokyo Bath Murderer? Because believe me, we've dealt with it."

"Yes, so I read." Near inclines his head slightly. "No, the two of you were in danger, so far away. I can only offer you protection if you stay in Japan. Specifically, this building."

"What the fuck are you talking about, Near?" I spit. Score one-all.

"Even though we have not been close, it seems cruel of me if I were to leave you two to die. So, I have brought you here. Please stay close from now on. I will not be giving you exit passes for the main doors."

"What the - we're _prisoners_?!" I explode, hand reaching for my gun already. It's a second's work to pull it out and aim.

"I can't let you do that, Mello." A calm voice off to the left says, and I look round to see Lidner, pointing a gun of her own at me. Next to her is Lester, in a similar position. I should have known that the Near Fanclub - sorry, the old members of the SPK - would be here.

"Fine." I growl, lowering the gun. "But somebody better give me some answers."

"All in good time, M." Near says evenly. He must have known how much that would piss me off.

"Do _not_ call him M." Matt interrupts. It's times like these that I remember why I love him. "We already have codenames. We're not… L. We're Wammy's kids, not his."

One of Near's eyebrows quirks. "Not L's kids?"

"We never were." Matt replies. "He didn't bring us up. He didn't give us a home. He chose us for a responsibility we were too young to deal with, and that's all."

"Hmm." Near considers this, tilting his head to redirect his attention to me. "Do you not mourn L, Mello?"

"Of course we do." I tell him. "But as a role model who failed, not a father figure or an idol."

"Interesting." Is all Near offers.

"It's been eight years, anyway." I continue. "We have to move on at some time. Which is exactly why you should tell us what is going on."

"Nicely argued." Near concedes, nodding his head. "Well. I will tell you soon. First I am assembling a team. We will all meet in the old HQ surveillance room in just a few hours. Please settle in until then."

"We have keys for you." Lidner adds, holding up two sets. "You two will be staying on the floor above. There's a bedroom and bathroom each, and an independent kitchen for you."

"So, L even designed living quarters in this building." Matt muses to me, as we take the keys and follow Lidner to the lift. "I wonder for what purpose."

"Who cares?" I scowl, put in a bad mood by Near. "Where did you put the chocolate?"

"It's in my bag." Matt answers, before he realises why I'm asking. "But… you… aren't going to eat it, are you?"

I smirk, and we step into the lift to find out what our new jail looks like.

* * *

MATT

Reasons why we should not have come back to Japan number one: Near is a creepy little jerk, which I'd kind of forgotten about.

Reasons why we should not have come back to Japan number two: bad habits are easy to fall back into.

When we reach our rooms we dump our bags and choose the biggest one to share. Near's given us single beds, deliberately no doubt, so we spend the best part of an hour trying to manoeuvre one into the other room and then find sheets the right size to fit a double bed. Afterwards we lay on our backs looking up at the ceiling, and that's when Mello reaches into my bag and pulls out a chocolate bar.

"Hey, Mells…" I say uneasily, but he throws a pack of cigarettes at me.

"Shut up and light up." He says.

"You used to hate it when I smoked indoors."

"It's not my indoors now, is it? It's not my ceiling that will stain or my furniture that will smell of smoke. Why should I care?"

"You're letting him get to you."

"What, Near? That little fucking baby? No, I'm not."

"Yes, you are." I murmur under my breath, but I don't force the issue. Instead I light a cigarette and then roll over so I can see him, breaking into the chocolate with one hand behind his head, his booted feet crossed at the ankles, looking for all the world like nothing is going on. But it is.

I touch the side of his face, the scarred side, and he glances across at me and sighs. "Look, you know he pisses me off." He says. "I just want to be done with this and go home. We're going to solve this one, me and you, Matt. Show Near who's the best at this game. Then we'll leave, and I'm done with him forever. I don't even know why we came."

"Because we can't resist a challenge." I smile. "What would the reputation of Kriminalist be if we didn't take part in such high-risk cases?"

Mello smirks. "You could be right."

"I am right." I laugh. "Anyway, you think we should get Near to refer to us as K from now on? Huh?"

Mello play-punches me on the arm, starting to laugh along with me, and before we know it we've descended into wrestling like little boys, me careful not to drop hot ash anywhere and him still protective of his scarred shoulder, out of habit more than anything else. For a moment we don't have a care in the world.

"Bzztsch - Mello. Matt. - Bzztsch."

We both jump out of our skin at that; Near's voice seemingly coming from nowhere. The crackling noise makes us think of the intercom almost straight away, so we head for it to see what he wants; the system is old and looks unused, probably just a relic from L's time here.

"Near? What do you want?" I ask, not trusting Mello with it.

"Bzztsch - Meet us in the surveillance room as soon as possible for a briefing session. - Bzztsch."

We don't reply, just pick up our jackets and head straight down there. We walk into the room to an unexpected sight: a full team again, mostly people we recognise - and not all of them because they cooperated with us in the past.

"Glad you could make it." Near states as we sit down, in a tone that implies neither gladness nor any other emotion. "The team is now assembled. In case we have forgotten each other, please introduce yourself. I am Near, investigation leader."

Lidner steps forward, her blonde hair shifting as she looks around at everyone else. She's the only woman in the room. "Halle Lidner. I'm a spy and a bodyguard. Anyone needs to leave the building, you talk to me first."

"You'll know me as Gevanni." The man next to her announces. "It's not my name but it will do. I'll mostly be working outside of the headquarters, but I'll drop in from time to time. I specialise in tracking suspects and surveillance."

"I'm Lester. Anthony Lester." Another man, one I know all to well, steps forward. "I'm Near's right-hand-man and personal bodyguard, but I'm happy to help where I'm needed."

"Aizawa." Another familiar face announces. "You all know me already. I don't really know why I'm here doing overtime instead of at home with my wife."

"Patience, Chief Aizawa." Near chirps, gleefully. "You will find out. Next, Mr Matsuda…?"

"Yes, well, I'm Matsuda." That well-known bumbling idiot says, waving at everyone in the room, much to Aizawa's obvious embarrassment. "I don't know how I can help except to say I have a lot of experience in the Japanese Police Force."

"And I'm Yamamoto." An unfamiliar man says, pushing his square glasses up his nose. "I've been working with Matsuda-san under Chief Aizawa, but I don't really know why I'm here either."

"I'm Matt." I say, jumping in before Near has to prompt me. I don't want to start this off by taking orders from him, because that's not how I mean to go on. "Just Matt. I'm good at… some things, I guess, but mostly I enjoy smoking and playing video games. I'm good for anything computer-related. Of course those of you who haven't seen us before -" A nod towards Yamamoto - "Will recognise our name instead. Me and this guy are Kriminalist, the LA detectives."

"There's just two of you?" Yamamoto raises an eyebrow. "Just you two solved all those crimes?"

"That's right." I smile. That's another point to us.

"And what about you? What's your name?" Yamamoto continues, turning to Mello, even though Matsuda tries to get his attention and warn him.

"Mello." He spits, in an acidic kind of way. "Now just what the fuck is going on here?"

"Of course, you will want to know." Near inclines his head slightly. He doesn't really seem to be paying attention, instead he's carefully painting various initials onto finger puppets. "Well. This team has been put together for the purpose of investigating a new criminal. Or rather, an old one. A new spate of Kira killings has been confirmed."

* * *

A/N: Dramatic cliffhanger ;) Please review and suggest title words!


	4. Getting What You Want: Apotheosis

A/N: Back again for another chapter! Keep those title suggestions rolling in, if you will - I'm trying to use every one that I get. This chapter's title comes from MatthewMellz - and in fact has more than one meaning.

* * *

Chapter Four: Apotheosis

MELLO

"What. The. Fuck. Did you just say?" I ask. "I think my ears have gone funny. You did not just say Kira."

"Unfortunately, it's true, Mello." Near nods calmly, as similar reactions run through Matt and the Japanese Police Force members. The SPK members, I notice, are already fully aware of the situation.

"How can it be? We saw him die, and you burned the notebooks." Matt asks, keeping his logical mind in the face of the shock.

"It appears there is another notebook in existence." Near replies. "There may be many. After all, we do not know how many Shinigami exist in that realm of theirs."

"But Light Bastard Yagami is dead!" I yell, not realising until the words were out of my mouth that I'd unintentionally called him by the name I've always given him.

"That's a bit far, don't you -" Matsuda begins, but Aizawa puts a hand on his shoulder to shut him up.

"Excuse me? A _bit far_?" I snap. "No, I don't really think it is, given that he was a mass murderer."

"But that was Kira. Light himself was -"

"Matsuda." Aizawa cut in. "It's all very well that you were friends with Light. But the man was a criminal. Please remember that. He would have killed you if he could."

Matsuda sighed, and hung his head. "I know. I'm sorry."

Near had watched all this with a coolly disinterested gaze; and only now did he step in. "If you are done, I will answer Mello's question." He waited for a nod before continuing. "I simply use the name 'Kira' to refer to a human who raises himself to the level of a God. You are correct, Light Yagami is dead. This is another Kira."

"The… third?" Yamamoto asks.

"Fourth." Near corrects. "So far only the people in this room know of his existence, so for the future please keep it that way."

"People will notice." Matt points out. "The internet fansites will talk."

"Yes." Near concedes. "But we will avoid this for as long as possible."

"So what is our next step?" Aizawa asks.

"First we will assign you all tasks. Then we will get to work. That is the usual order of things."

"Aren't you going to give us more details, first?" I ask, frowning. "You've shown no evidence that there _is_ another Kira."

"Hm. Lester?"

"I'm on it." Lester replies, tapping away on a keyboard. The big screen in the centre of the room, previously used for closer examination of surveillance footage, flickered into life. The projection it showed was a list of names, all originating from the same prison, with times and causes of death listed next to them. Each one said 'midnight', though on different days, and 'heart attack'. There must have been twenty names, at least.

"Well." Matt says. "I guess we'd better get working, then."

* * *

MATT

Pretty soon Near had it all worked out. All of us doing the hard work instead of him. I suppose it was only to be expected. He just carried on playing with his finger puppets instead of paying any real attention to anything, while Lester doled out the jobs. No one got to choose, I notice. He's had it all figured out since the day he realised there was a new Kira, I expect, and it only makes me trust him less. There's something about him that isn't right - it's like he doesn't have the conscience that I - and even Mello - have. Of course, for Mello that conscience is simply religion; and he doesn't care about going to Hell. But at least he _knows _when he's done something wrong.

Anyway, Near's creepiness aside, I guess he has logic. He managed to assign everyone to jobs that suited them. Matsuda was assigned to watching all the news programmes in Tokyo, and writing down all of the names of criminals that came up. I suppose it's all that he was good for, really. The man has the observational skills of a blind badger, and what's with sticking up for Light Yagami? Honestly, I don't want to sound like Mello here, but does he not have _any_ brain cells?

Aizawa was put to checking the whereabouts and health of all of those criminals, as well as those already in Japan's holding cells, which was not really an enviable task. Mind-numbingly boring, but also requiring large amounts of attention - I suppose as the Chief, Near thinks he's responsible enough. At any rate, Yamamoto was set to help him, so those two will be working hard. Yamamoto should probably be the coffee boy. I'm certainly not doing it, and he's the youngest here except for us Wammy kids.

Gevanni left almost as soon as the introductions were over. I guess he had something better to do, though whatever it was, we're none the wiser. Near's playing some of the cards close to his chest, of course; when does he not? As for me and Mells… well.

I'm on internet duty. Hooray for me. I get to check out all the Kira sites, news sites, that sort of thing, for anyone claiming to be the new Kira or claiming that there is one, or reporting a mysterious death that was not caused by heart attack but something else. Meanwhile Mello - and this is what scares me - is supposed to be posing as a Kira fanatic on a couple of forums, digging for information. I give it… one day, before he posts something out-of-character and his cover is blown. Anyway, I don't even know why I'm doing this job, to be honest, or Mello. I think Near is toying with us, or keeping us out of the way, or just trying to infuriate us - something like that. I know he knows we won't last long at it. He's up to something, and I don't like it.

Everyone's busying themselves. Lidner and Lester are cross-checking all the dates of death and crime, seriousness of crime, and any other factor they can think of to look for a pattern. It seems they had already started this task before we arrived. It doesn't surprise me - Near has probably known about this for longer than he's letting on. Of course I suppose it must have been a little humiliating, to discover a new Kira right under his nose, on his turf. It seems he perhaps hasn't been doing his job well enough. If people can't fear Kira, they should certainly fear L in his place.

I do not know what Mello is thinking. Ever since the introductions were over he's been silent, not questioning anything Near says or complaining at all. Not even demanding a second look at the data. I'm not sure he actually knows how to work in a group like this, but I doubt that's the issue. I can't work it out, but there's something wrong with him. He even does the work he's been set to without trying to protest.

A couple of hours after everyone settles down he gets up suddenly, and walks over to Near. He says something quietly, then Near looks up at him for a moment, and they go outside. When they come back in Mello sits back down at the computer without a word. I'm getting more and more suspicious by the minute - what's on his mind? I try to get his attention, but the room is full of people talking and machines whirring, and he pretends he can't hear me.

"Matsuda, can I have that list now?" Aizawa asks. "I need to start checking it."

"Sure. … Oh! I know! I'll fax it to you."

"…Fax?" Aizawa asks. Several people turn to look at Matsuda, waiting for him to do or say something idiotic, as usual.

"That way we can both have a copy, you see?" Matsuda beams, feeding it into a fax machine at the end of the room. It seems the SPK have use for even the most outdated of technologies, I think to myself, rolling my eyes and getting back to work.

Everyone works hard. By the end of the day I feel like I need a cigarette already. Mello and I take the lift up to our floor and sit down on the bed.

"My eyes hurt from looking at that screen all day." Mello complains.

"That's why I wear these." I reply, pulling my goggles down from my face. "So what's bugging you?"

"Other than the fact that there's a serial killer on the loose?" He fires back, and I smirk.

"Yeah, other than that. I can tell there's something. You can't lie to me, Mells. I can read you like a book."

"Yeah? What number am I thinking of?"

"I'm not telepathic, dumbass." I say, rolling my eyes and grinning. He says nothing for a while, just sits in silence. Then he pulls a chocolate bar out of his pocket, and opens it; but before he puts it in his mouth he starts to speak again.

"Matt?"

"Yes?" I look at Mello. He isn't looking at me, but at the chocolate, and his eyes are unreadable. His tone isn't, however. It's sad. Nervous, almost. Like he's about to do something he doesn't want to do.

"We need to talk."

* * *

A/N: Hmm, what's next? Reviews appreciated, as always!


	5. Getting What You Want: Deputation

A/N: Well, well. Valentine's Day ;) The observant reader probably will have guessed that, as such, there would of course be an update today, and that since it follows on from last chapter's cliffhanger there might be something to do with relationships. Well… here's the next chapter, with the title supplied by jjwitdaheydiddydiddy.

* * *

Chapter Five: Deputation

MELLO

After Near told us what was going on, it started a train of thought moving in my mind. And once the train set off, it wouldn't stop, not for a good while.

I just kept thinking it over, and over, and over. I tried to find another solution. But I couldn't. There just… wasn't one. So when I realised that, I went to talk to Near, and negotiate something. Surprisingly, he agreed with everything I said. He told me he'd arrange everything right away, no expense spared.

"If there are two of us, we will surpass L." He said.

I looked at him, thinking in that moment how much I hated him. How dare he just dismiss Matt, like he was holding us back or something? What about three, Near? What about fucking _three_?

After that, I went back to work, trying to act like everything was normal. Of course Matt knew it wasn't. He can tell every time something's wrong, it's useless for me to try to hide anything from him. Anyway, I got through the day, and even a little conversation, before it got to the point where it was unavoidable. I'm so nervous. I need chocolate. But that would just be an excuse to stop me from speaking.

"We need to talk." I say, the words seeming to stick in my throat because I know he's going to hate them.

There is a little pause, and Matt starts to fiddle with his goggles. "Talk, then." He says, his tone changed already.

"It's…" I sigh, gathering my thoughts into some kind of vocal sense. ""It's all this thing with Kira. It's made me think, about the future and about life. It's made me think a lot."

"Oh." Matt's voice sounds hollow now, and he's refusing to look at me. I want to turn his head and make him meet my eyes, but at the same time I know this will be hard enough.

"This investigation is crucial, and I've got to give it my full attention. I can't do that, if…"

"Mello, stop." Matt says, finally looking up. His face is, unexpectedly, full of pain. "Stop it. If you're going to… break up with me, then just do it. Just do it."

I stare at him for a moment, then rush forward to put one hand on his cheek and the other on his shoulder. "No, that's… that's not what I mean! I… Matt, don't you know I love you?"

He closes his eyes for a moment, and takes a shaking breath. "Well, no. For a moment there I wasn't sure. But… if you're not breaking up with me, then…?"

"I just… I'm worried about you." I say, pulling him a little closer. "So I'm sending you home."

"You're sending me to LA? Mells, that makes no sense, because Kira will know where -"

"No. I mean… home." I reply. "I mean Wammy's House. You're going back to Roger."

"Roger?!" Matt explodes, frowning and pushing my hands away. "What the hell, Mello, I'm not a kid any more and he can't -"

"Just relax, okay? It's just so that you're safe. Matt, I can't lose you. I can't even risk it. So please, just get on a plane and go."

"And what about me?" Matt half-shouts, his eyes filling with tears. "Maybe I don't want to risk losing you! Why do you get to stay in the danger and not me?"

"Because I can handle it. Because I've come up against this before." I answer. "Matt, I'm sorry. But last time, I was the one who survived a bomb attack and the Mafia and Light Yagami. You joined the game late. You don't know what it was like."

"So I can learn!"

"Near agrees with me." I say, every word like a tombstone falling over in the room, laying heavily on both of our ears. I see Matt's face fall and then shut off, turning cold and angry.

"You're choosing him over me?"

"I'm choosing your safety over how much I want to be with you." I correct. Behind us, the door opens, and Lester is standing there. "There's no argument. The plane is booked, and I packed for you earlier. Please go."

Matt stands up stiffly, his hands clenched into fists, and walks past me without another word. Not even goodbye. I know he's angry, and I'm going to miss him like hell, especially with that albino motherfucker in my space all the time, but at least he won't die. When he calms down he'll understand.

It's only a few hours later that I find the heart-shaped box of chocolates he'd bought for me. Shit. How could I forget Valentine's Day?

* * *

MATT

I am so fucking angry. I want to kill something. Preferably Near, or whoever the new Kira is. I scowl all the way to the car, Lester breathing down my neck like some sort of aged bodyguard. I'm half his age. I wish he would back off. I could probably take him. If I had a gun.

"Get in the car." He says brusquely. "Matsuda will drive you to the airport. You're to get on the plane and keep your head down. No trouble."

"Right." I say submissively, but my heart is racing with new hope. This is just perfect. Matsuda? He couldn't keep a snail under surveillance! Giving him the slip should be as easy as… actually, I don't think there _is_ anything this easy. In fact, I think I'll be able to convince him not to raise the alarm, either. Thank you, Near, for still trusting this halfwit.

I get into the passenger seat, Lester helpfully closing the door for me, and look round into Matsuda's smilingly cheerful face. He's always so happy. It must be nice, being an imbecile. For a moment I almost wish I could share his outlook. Almost.

"Ready for your trip, Matt-san?" He beams idiotically, and I roll my eyes. Sometimes I can understand why Mello gets so snappy with people.

"Yeah, let's get going." I say with forced politeness.

"I'm so glad to be driving you today! It gets stuffy in the office." He burbles, easing out of the HQ car park and onto the road. I nod and hum sympathetically, not wanting to create an unnecessary conversation. I've got to keep Matsuda happy if I want to convince him to let me go.

We drive along quite happily. Well, Matusda does. He switches on the CD player and the Beastie Boys scream out, some kind of Greatest Hits compilation. Well. If that's what he wants. I reach behind me for my bag, pull out the Gameboy tucked in the side, and play a game for a while. By the time 'Sabotage' plays I'm even singing along, in spite of myself. This is quite an enjoyable diversion, really, a bit of time to play games; it's all the more enjoyable because of the knowledge we'll be turning round and going back any time soon.

When the song finishes, Matsuda turns off the speakers and sighs happily. "I love that band." He confides.

"Hmm." I say, doing my best to sound sad. It works; he glances over.

"Are you alright, Matt-san?"

"No…" I say mournfully. "Of course I'm not…"

"Well, what's the matter?"

"I'm going away from my one and only love. How could I be happy? He doesn't want me any more…"

This is just like role-playing. Nonetheless, I'm starting to feel a little sick at how pathetic I sound.

"Aww, Matt-san, I'm sure he does care for you!"

"Then why doesn't he want me with him? I'd give anything to stay with him, even just to stay near him if he doesn't know…"

There's a pause of a few seconds, during which I artfully sniff. I'm waiting for the seeds I just planted to grow.

"Well… you know, there is a way…"

"Yes?" I say eagerly, looking round at Matsuda.

"Well… no, I shouldn't have said anything really…"

"No, go on!"

"I'm just thinking that… the floor above yours is unused. Maybe you could stay there for a while, until Mello-san realises he misses you…"

"You think so?" I ask, my face shining with unbridled hope. Yes, I am a master of disguise.

"We don't have to tell Near or anyone else." He adds hastily. "I might get into trouble."

"Oh, thank you, Matsuda-san!" I gush, as he pulls the car into a u-turn.

And that, my friends, is how you get yourself back in the game.

* * *

A/N: Hmm, anyone recognise Near's first words of this chapter? They're a quote from Volume 12. That said, please review, and don't forget a word suggestion!


	6. A Lesson in Hiding: Aufenthaltsort

A/N: Sorry it's two days late, been a busy week here. This begins the third lesson, and the title was suggested by Ichimaru-Taichou.

* * *

**A LESSON IN HIDING**

* * *

Chapter 6: Aufenthaltsort

MELLO

I can't believe how badly I miss him already, and it's only been twenty-four hours. The investigation room seems empty and cold, the people in it dull and quiet. I keep looking over to where he was sat yesterday and there's just nothing. Matsuda returned at some point during the night and is sleeping off the journey in another room, and only Near seems happy at the new spaces. The new boy, Yamamoto, keeps turning to say something and then having to close his mouth; I hear he's only ever worked on cases with Matsuda, so I suppose he can empathise with me today. Only, Matsuda is still in Japan.

I'm supposed to be doing this stupid fake Kira fan thing, trying to get information, but honestly, I don't see how it's going to help at all. Plus someone has to take over Matt's job. I glance sideways at Near and consider asking him, but I'm not his puppy, doing what he says all the time and begging to go outside. No, I made up my mind already, so I'm just going to go right ahead and do it.

I type out a little bit and click enter, then wait; the page reloads and I look at my handiwork proudly, enjoying the moment, feeling pretty good for having posted it to all those Kira idiots.

'Kiralover6739 wrote:

All of you guys here are fucking idiots. Kira is dead. The Japanese police force found him and killed him, it's over. Whoever is killing people now is just a copycat. Kira is wrong and sinful. I hope he burns in hell for ten thousand years, along with anyone who tries to copy him. The new Kira is a pale, sad, pathetic imitation of the real Kira.'

I leave it a minute or so and press refresh; I already have no less than five angry replies. Like shooting fish in a barrel, really. I stretch out my arms over my head comfortably, swing myself out of my chair and walk over to Near.

"Hey, Near. So apparently my cover's blown on the fansites. Can I check stuff instead, like Matt was doing?"

Near looks up at me. His expression is blank, but I know he realises it was on purpose and I know he hates it. He nods once, and I smirk and walk back, relishing that little tiny victory.

* * *

MATT

It's a little dusty on this extra floor, I have to admit. On the one hand that reassures me that no one comes up here ever, but on the other hand, it's as much as I can do to keep from coughing every thirty seconds. I try to make as little noise as possible. I've found part of the old security system here; I have a faint suspicion that this used to be Wammy's floor. Watari. I'm never really know how I'm supposed to refer to him, now he's gone.

Anyway, there's a few big screens and some massive headphones, the type you see in recording studios, really high-tech. Of course I couldn't resist powering it all up and having a look. It turns out there's surveillance for every room in the building; and before I know it I've spent half of my first day in hiding just watching Mello.

This obviously being an entirely unprofitable exercise, I eventually tear myself away and go searching through the rest of the floor. In one room, more of an enlarged storage cupboard than anything else, I find boxes and boxes of archived records of the first investigation. I thought all the notes had been destroyed at the time of Wammy and L's deaths, but obviously they wanted someone to find them, because they're all right here. Details of time, cause, date of death of thousands upon thousands of people, chronologically, starting with Kira's first victims. Everything is here, pictures, minute details of any subtle difference in the way they died, everything you could possibly think of. The investigation was nothing if not thorough.

I spend most of the day checking through the files, looking for anything that might be of use this time around, making notes of anything that could conceivably be important. By the time the others are calling it a day I'm back in front of the screens, with the headphones plugged in, watching everyone go their separate ways. Mello goes up to our floor in the lift. I wish I could be there with him.

* * *

MELLO

Motherfucker. I shouldn't have sent him away. I know I did it for the right reasons, I know it was to keep him safe, but I miss him so much already it's really, really easy to forget that. We haven't been apart even one night in years. I slouch against the side of the lift, wiping my hands over my face, trying to think of something else. Chocolate. Yes, that's what I need. I check all of my pockets and discover half a bar, and start eating it right away. I try and lose myself in that all-too-familiar taste, try and forget everything but that. Even so I can't help but notice that it tastes a little different without the tang of smoke in my nose. I remember that trip we took out into the snowy woods and sigh, wishing we could just go back to that and ignore Kira and not have to be apart like this.

When I get into the bedroom I just take off my jacket and go to the bed, not bothered about food or getting changed or anything like that, just wanting to sleep for as long as possible. One thing stops me.

Why the fuck is there a half-eaten apple on my bed?

I was here all night last night and there was nothing. No one left the investigation room all day, not even for thirty seconds, we worked right through lunch and everything. Who could have put it here? I go over to it cautiously and pick it up by the stalk, turning it around to examine it. There is only one bite missing, sliced perfectly through the skin straight through to the core. A big bite. What really worries me, though, is the fact that whoever put this here has carved the letter "L" on the back, in the same lettering as the man himself used. What does this mean? Why was it here?

I don't understand anything, but more than ever now I'm sure that sending Matt away was the right choice. He doesn't need to be involved in this kind of creepy shit. He's safe in England, so far away it almost makes me want to break down, but also so far away that he's safe. I don't worry about myself, only him. I can deal with this knowing that he is safe.

There is nothing to be gained by revealing to everyone what I've found. I take the apple to the fridge and store it in there, hoping that it might be preserved a little longer that way. Then, resolutely, not letting this whole thing get to me, I get into bed and go to sleep.

* * *

MATT

I'm watching Mello when he finds the apple, and I'm fucking creeped out. He deals with it so calmly! I want to go down there and see him and tell him I know, tell him it scares me that someone got into his bedroom just like that. If they can get into his bedroom then they can also kill him. There must be some kind of security breach.

I rewind the video for the camera in his room (our room, yesterday) and search for any sign of the person who put it there. I search for hours, backwards and forwards, looking even for a shadow that might hint, but no matter what I do I can only come to one conclusion. The apple just appears there, out of nowhere, right before lunchtime. If it just appears, that means one of two things. First, something is going on here that is beyond our depth, and I don't believe that for a second. Second, someone has managed to put a loop of footage into the camera, so that their entrance is covered. That must be the answer, but if someone's managed to hack L's security system… woah. I mean, I had a chance to play around with it a long while back and I was blown away with how secure it is. Really secure. Plus there was no sign of an alarm or any kind of reaction from the system, so whoever did this was good enough that the system didn't even notice them doing it. I'm not even sure that _I'm_ that good.

It also worries me that whoever did this used L's name as a… what? A taunt? It means that they know what this building is, they know who we are and what we're doing here, what we failed to do last time… so what else do they know? Our origins, our dates of birth? Our _names_?

We may just be in more trouble than we think.

* * *

MELLO

Waking up I almost forget for a second; then it all comes back to me. Matt is gone, someone planted an apple in my room, Kira is back. Everything crashing into my consciousness like someone's punching me in the face. Probably Kira.

Then I recognise the reason that I'm awake. My alarm hasn't gone off - it's still pre-dawn - but my phone is ringing on the bedside table. I pick it up and see Roger's name on the caller display; probably ringing to let me know that Matt has arrived.

"Yeah, hi?" I say, sitting up and running a hand through my hair to keep it out of my face.

"M, you didn't call me. Has there been some kind of complication?"

"What? Why should I call you? Isn't… the other M with you?"

A pause on the other end of the line; Roger's voice suddenly seems more resigned, less agitated. "No. I was hoping you had delayed his flight for some reason. He was not on the plane, nor did we receive confirmation of his ever getting on it."

"Shit." I swear, rubbing at my eyes to wake myself up. "Where do you think he is? Matsuda said he took him to the airport."

"He may have been… compromised."

"You mean kidnapped." I spit through gritted teeth. "Say what you mean."

"Yes, kidnapped. We're trying to coordinate with airport security, but you'll have more effect when going through the correct Japanese channels."

"Yeah, got it. I'll keep you posted." I reply, putting the phone down and swinging myself out of the bed to go over to the intercom. It must work both ways. I press send, and hope that Near wasn't enjoying a nice dream.

"Near? Wake the fuck up. We have a problem."

* * *

A/N: Theeeeeere we go. Questions, comments, feedback? Remember to keep suggesting those words!


	7. A Lesson in Hiding: Phantasmagoria

A/N: Late again? Gadzooks! Please be patient with me, when I get back to having time again I'll post quicker than usual to make up for it. In the meantime, this title was suggested by jjwitdaheydiddydiddy, and contains the first perspective scene from Near.

* * *

Chapter Seven - Phantasmagoria

NEAR

Clearly there is something not quite correct about the investigation so far. Although we are working very hard we seem to find no results. Now, we find things being taken beyond our control. This is not the kind of investigation I had intended to run.

With my rude awakening thanks to Mello, I find myself in the investigation room once more, despite it's being still the hours of darkness. He has relayed to me all that he knows about Matt's disappearance, and although I at first suspected foul play on his behalf, I am now more than convinced that his worry is genuine. To a certain extent, however, this is distressing: I would rather it were a childish prank designed to catch me out than a real threat.

"You are sure he did not give any indication that he would go elsewhere?" I ask, making certain of this point.

"No. I mean… he was angry, of course he was angry! But he did what I asked him to all the same. It's Matt! It's not like he would join the Dark Side just because he was angry with me!"

"That is not what I was implying. Nevertheless," I sigh, twisting a strand of hair around my finger, "We will deal with this. I will set Gevanni to track him down. He is very capable and you can rest assured that he will do his best."

"What if his best isn't good enough?" Mello spits. Always so vitriolic. "I want to do it myself."

"Out of the question, M." I say calmly. "You will only get yourself captured by Kira and further jeopardise the investigation."

Mello growls angrily, like some sort of beast. He must learn to calm down. "Another thing, Near. Don't fucking call me M, and stop leaving me little L hints. That apple was not appreciated."

"Apple?" I ask, choosing to ignore the rest of his speech.

"You know what I'm talking about, don't play dumb."

"I'm afraid I do not, Mello. Perhaps you could enlighten me."

"You left this apple on my bed." He says, producing a small plastic bag from inside a pocket. He drops it onto the coffee table and an apple, half-eaten, rolls out, with an 'L' carved upon the back.

"Very curious." I say, picking it up and examining it. "It seems whoever did this has strong teeth. A man, I would assume from the jaw width. An adult, probably in his twenties to thirties."

Realisation dawns on Mello's face, though it is not pleasant to see a man struggle with his inner vaults of hatred, even when he does so to admit that you are innocent. "So it wasn't you?"

"No, Mello, I'm afraid not. For now I don't believe it necessary to worry the other members of the team about this; perhaps it was a one-off prank by Matsuda or his friend, Yamamoto. I will attempt to discover its origin. In the meantime please return to your rooms for now, and carry on as normal when the sun rises. This team has enough to worry about already."

Mello hates taking orders from me, I know this, but he nods grimly and leaves all the same. I suppose I should be glad for that. Sweeping the apple into a drawer, I return to my own desk and open the file I had been using previously.

It is not what I am expecting. There on top of all the other papers is a playing card, a King of Hearts to be precise, and it is not in a usual state. A neat cut has been made, one stroke of a well-sharpened scissor blade as I judge it, across the jugular of the King. Upon the King's head, removed as it is, is a crudely painted 'L' in red paint. Adding insult to injury, it appears that this is actually part of a pack that belongs to me, which I will now not be able to use. It seems our troubles have just begun.

* * *

MATT

When I woke up Mello was already pacing across his room on the screen, seemingly having been awake for a while. I wonder what woke him. I don't have time to go back through the tapes, though; he was probably just worrying about that apple, and besides, I have work to do. Important work. If I can find some crucial information then Mello will forgive me for coming back, because it will have been worth it, and then he'll let me stay. I have to keep going through the archived files. There must be something, however small, that will tell me why Yagami killed L at that particular point; why he felt so threatened. I am sure that L must have been very close to discovering some kind of proof.

Today I start work on a big box I found hidden under a desk. It rattles when I move it, and opening it I find out why. Right on top is a pair of handcuffs with a strangely long chain between them; I realise that this must be the pair that L used to chain himself to Light Yagami. His murderer. The thought makes me sick. I pick up the handcuffs and examine either side, trying to find a difference in them that might tell me who was on which side, that might tell me something about Yagami. There's nothing. It even seems as if they were cleaned after they were used, and I wonder why. Wammy's thoroughness, I suppose; he couldn't allow many things to stay dirty for long, even if they were evidence.

At about lunchtime I take a break and watch the others eating on the screen. They all look so serious, so determined. Aside from Matsuda, of course, and his perpetual cheerfulness. I watch him steal Yamamoto's glasses right off his face and wear them, laughing, while the rest of the team either ignore him or roll their eyes. It's as if he does it all solely for his own amusement, or just doesn't realise how the others think of him. Once again I find myself wishing life were that simple.

I go into the kitchen of my own floor and open the fridge, trying to decide what to eat out of the stuff Matsuda bought for me on the way back here. I pick up a jar of peanut butter, and behind it is something that shouldn't be there. I pick it up hesitantly, wondering how it got there and why. A white chess piece - a pawn - with the letter 'G' painted onto it in red paint? Is this… Near's? I know he has more than one chess set down there, and I'm sure I've seen this style of piece in his possession before… Does he know I'm up here? Is he trying to, what, psych me out or something?

Screw that, I'm not playing ball. Come to think of it, it was probably him who planted the apple in Mello's room, and then reset the cameras. I'm not going back down there until I have my magic ticket - the information. Until then he can keep his stupid little taunts, and enjoy thinking they're clever.

* * *

MELLO

I'm sick of Near. Really sick of him and his attitude. He clearly doesn't give a fuck that Matt is missing. I don't think he believes me about the apple either, the fucker. Well, he's going to have to now, because I've found another one.

I can't have been gone for more than half an hour. There was no one else in the corridor, no movement at all. Everyone is still asleep or at their own homes. And yet when I got back into the bedroom after our little chat, there was another apple on the covers of the bed. It was wooden this time, rosewood, carved with a smooth letter 'D'. It doesn't seem to make sense. 'L' I understood, but 'D'?

Why those particular letters? Why are they aimed at me? How could they have got in here? Who put them there? What are they supposed to mean? Is it just a decoy, like the message the first Kira sent to L, or is it something more sinister? A threat? I think back and suddenly remember the note that Light Bastard Yagami had left for me - _Each bite brings you closer to death_ - and wonder if they are somehow linked. And if they are, then either the person who is doing this knows about the notes somehow, or… wrote them. But I can't think about that possibility. It simply isn't a possibility. Light Bastard Yagami is six feet under, right where he belongs.

I pace until the sun comes up, trying hard to think. I need to find Matt and I need to catch the new Kira and I need to figure out what these apples mean, but it's all going round in my head and all I can really think of is Matt. His voice, his taste, his smell. What if he really has been captured? Or killed? What if Kira found out his name? I can't help thinking that I should be out there, doing something, trying to help. But I'm stuck in this place, behind all the security, unable to leave and do what I need to do. I hope, wherever he is, he understands why I haven't gone to get him already. I hope he understands it's not because I don't love him any more.

Eventually it's time to go through to the investigation room. I try to act normal, pretend nothing has happened, but it's hard. Every time the phone rings I expect it to be a ransom demand or news of Matt's body being found. I can hardly take this. I need to know he's safe.

* * *

A/N: So, what's with all these pieces? Please review and remember to suggest a chapter title!


	8. A Lesson In Hiding: Ruffled

A/N: This chapter's title was suggested by Lfangirl28.

* * *

Chapter Eight - Ruffled

NEAR

Several days pass, and still there are no new deaths from Kira. I begin to question myself; were those deaths really planned, or just coincidence? Then I look around at my investigation team and know I am right. These people believe I am, and their trust cannot all be false.

It brings up worries to my mind. I know my team well, from their extensive files and from previous cases, most notably that of the previous Kira. These men, though often unassuming and seemingly normal, are among the best investigative minds of the world. Only three people may challenge them; myself, Mello, and Matthew. I do not question that. There is no need to second-guess what is undisputable fact.

Though as time passes I become yet more uneasy. In these several days I have made yet more discoveries in my daily life; a torn Jack of Clubs here, a seven of Spades screwed into a ball there. It seems that someone is trying to unnerve me, and though I am usually the most calm of souls I regret to find that it is working. Who is it that places these things around for me to find? I can think only of two answers, and both worry me equally. The first is that one of the men on my team is not who I think he is. The second is that a God of Death - a Shinigami - is somewhere here, haunting us, controlled by the new Kira and bribed into distracting us… from what? His bigger plan? Why does he not move? I am reminded ever frequently of the message L first received from Light Yagami - the message that made no sense, had no bearing on anything, other than a simple taunt. I do not wish to be pulled in to such a trick, but I cannot afford to miss what could be crucial evidence.

I pace my chambers thoughtfully, tying knots into my hair and breezing past towers of cards that I stood on ladders to complete. They hold no pleasure for me now. All I can think of when I look at them is those mysterious letters painted onto the cards left for me. I go back to what serves as a bedroom on this floor and lay my cards out on the bed. There is the beheaded King of Hearts with his 'L', a painted Queen of Hearts who now wears her hair in blonde bunches and gothic clothing, with the 'A' painted over her heart. There is the Jack of Clubs missing the very edges of his card, torn carefully as if to make a rough border, with the 'E' over his face. Moving over them quicker, I see the 'O', the two 'P's, and the 'V'. In only three days these cards have haunted me. No matter how I order them - "POP VALE", "VEAL OPP", "LOVE PAP" - they still hold no sense or meaning for me. I wonder if there are still cards to come. Sighing, I sweep them carefully back into a small plastic bag - the type usually reserved for evidence found at crime scenes - and seek out Mello. It is time, as it were, to lay my cards upon the table.

* * *

MELLO

Three days. Three fucking days. Where is he? Images of him flash through my mind - dead, tortured, chained up. Unconscious in a ditch. And still there's no ransom note. I know what I would be thinking if I'd been hired to this case. No note, no reason for him to leave? Then, Ma'am, if you'll excuse my saying so, either he's been killed outright or he ran away and you don't really know him at all.

But could he have run away? I seize onto that tiny hope; yes, could he conceivably have hated the idea of staying with Roger so much that he simply skipped out? That he figured himself safer if no one, not even I, knew where he was? Yes, yes, that makes sense. That makes so much sense.

But is it true?

Over and over in my mind I run the possibilities, hating this confinement which leaves me powerless to look for him. Relying on Gevanni is something I would much rather avoid. I don't know him, I don't trust him. For all we know Gevanni is on the other team. I know there isn't anything I can do, but all these apples everywhere really aren't fucking helping. The first one was bad enough, it's going off now, getting all dried-up and shrivelled, but now I've got a whole collection of seven. Not all of them are real apples - I've found a carved rosewood decorative piece, a felt toy, even a little plastic phone charm. But they're all apples, and they all have those fucking stupid letters carved or painted onto them.

It's driving me insane. What the hell do they mean? I should know this! I should be able to work this out! But all I can think of right now is Matt and whether he's alright, whether he's alive. Surely I would know, somehow, if he was dead? Surely I would feel it?

Near knocks at my door at some point in the evening, and I reluctantly let him in. I'm focusing all my fear for Matt into anger at him, and even though it's getting me nowhere it does make me feel a bit better. He's the one that's keeping me locked up here, anyway. If it was me looking for Matt I could probably find him in less than a day.

"I have something to tell you." He announces, girlishly twirling his hair as ever. I only glare at him in response, until he pulls out an evidence bag full of what at first glance are ripped up pieces of paper.

As he lays out the cards and I grasp the full realisation of what I'm seeing, my anger only builds. "You lied to me." I accuse him.

"No; I merely failed to mention the truth." Near replies calmly, making me grit my teeth. "That is not lying, I think you will find, Mello."

"Alright, you deceived me." I spit, and then allow a sly smile to creep across my face. "Which is alright, I suppose, since I was also deceiving you."

I go to the drawers beside the bed and pull out all seven of my apples, arranging them in a row under Near's cards. We each examine the others' carefully, trying to find some sort of meaning in the apparent random strings of letters.

Together we have the following:

L A E O P P V (cards), L Y O O U K D (apples).

"No matter how I arrange them," Near says, "They just do not appear to make sense."

"I know." I say, anger forgotten temporarily as I chew my lip, looking down at this puzzle. "It's as if we're looking at the wrong language. The wrong order, certainly."

"Why don't we just try and sound it out?" He suggests, beginning with his own first string of words. "Upload… love… poky… clearly wrong…"

"Lad love…" I try, but falter as I realise there's nothing coherent to continue with.

"Do value yolk… no, day vole look pup."

"Day vole… are you serious with that guess?" I ask, looking at him askance.

"No, not really. This is getting us nowhere, Mello."

"I'm aware of that." I snap, irritably. "But what else can we do? This makes no fucking sense!"

"Perhaps the puzzle isn't finished yet." Near responds, calm as ever. "I think maybe we are missing something, some key to help us."

* * *

MATT

I'm so close above their heads it seems strange that they can't see me or hear me breathing, just as I can see and hear them. I feel like shouting down at them! It's so obvious, but I'm the only one who can see it!

Not that it's really a fair comparison between the three of us, because I have more clues than them. Nine more clues, to be precise. Along with the "G" I first found, now I have two "O"s, two "D"s, an "E", an "A", an "S", and an "F". And when you put those together with the other fourteen letters… well. I'm surprised the other two didn't even think of it. It is so glaringly clear!

But now I'm faced with a dilemma. I can solve their problem - I can tell them the answer to their riddle - but to do that I'd have to come out of hiding and face them. And Mello will probably be a lot more angry with me than I at first estimated. I hadn't really thought this through, you see, and now it seems there's a lot of danger involved. And he seems a lot more worried than I'd thought he would be.

But in all good conscience, I can't stay here in silence and let them try and figure it out when I know I have the answer. It might be nothing, but it might be a clue. And I can't let that slip by.

I take another glance at the screens; they're still in Mello's room, talking it over. I take a deep breath. It's time to tell them what I know.

* * *

A/N: Can you solve it? Let me know your guesses :) Don't forget to suggest a new word for the chapter title!


	9. A Lesson In Discovering: Decode

A/N: Alright, alright, I was cheating - you didn't get the full puzzle yet! Here begins the third lesson, with a title suggested by Arekuzanra. Oh, and Happy Easter!

* * *

**A LESSON IN DISCOVERING**

* * *

Chapter Nine: Decode

MATT

Something on the monitors arrests my attention just as I'm about to go. Could it… really be? Right there, in front of them? But of course… there are still some letters missing. I count them up - there are eight left to find. That makes three each, but one of us will only get two.

I start searching all around me, through boxes, behind units, on window sills. It takes me only maybe five minutes to find them - a "T" on a rook, and an "H" on a queen. Looking at the word patterns, I can only assume that there are no more letters for me; the rest are for Mello and Near. Armed with my evidence, it seems, it's time for me to go down a floor.

I step into the elevator, glad that restrictions don't apply on this floor; I can move around as I like. It rumbles smoothly into movement, briefly dipping to the next door down, barely feeling like movement at all. There is a faint chime from the speakers to announce our arrival and then the doors slide open with a soft swish, letting me out.

I pause for a moment before I knock at the door. I can hear their voices still, hushed and muffled, but theirs. I close my eyes, trying to hold onto this last moment, because I know that after this I'm going to have a lot of explaining to do. They won't be happy with me. But what else can I do? I'm here now… there's no way back.

I'm a little scared, actually. I pull my goggles up over my eyes, the thick glass colouring everything in such a familiar way. I think if they're going to be mad at me anyway I might as well add another reason, so I light a cigarette as quietly as I can and draw in a deep breath. Once the nicotine starts to work on my nerves I feel a bit better. I put the cigarette in my mouth, one hand in my pocket, and with the other, I knock on the door.

It takes a few moments, then I hear a rustling noise as someone gets up. Mello's voice comes through from the other side of the door, quiet but calm - "Who is it?"

I take the cigarette back out of my mouth and clear my throat. "Ah… It's… it's me, Mells."

Mello tears the door open and stares at me, shock and joy and confusion and shock passing over his face in quick succession, until he drags me into the room by my wrist and closes the door behind me again. He whirls to face me, his hands gripping the sides of my shoulders as he searches my face for… for what?

"Where the fuck have you been?!" He demands, half angry and half relieved, and for a brief moment I remember how I felt when he called me from Japan back at the start of all this, asking me to help him when I hadn't seen him in so long.

"Uh…" I reach up and adjust my goggles slightly, then point to the ceiling. "Up there."

"Wh…" Mello and Near turn as if attached by a string to stare at the ceiling, as if by some special trick they could look up there and see me, a few hours ago, looking down at them.

"Anyway," I say quickly, wanting to take advantage of their surprise to distract them from the fact that they have every right to be really, really angry, "I know how to solve the anagram. I mean, I know what it says. I have some letters too."

"You… have some letters? What are they?" Near demands. I try to ignore the fact that Mello is staring at me as if he's never seen me before.

"Here." I let all the chess pieces fall from my pockets, throwing them onto the bed next to the apples and cards. "I also saw on the security cameras that there are at least two more hidden in this room, I think three. There's one, right under the lampshade, you see? It's an 'N'."

"Stop all of this." Near says suddenly. "You know the answer. Tell us the answer. No more clues."

"Alright, alright." I move to the bed, and start rearranging the letters into the right order. "There should be nine apples, then my eleven chess pieces, then ten cards."

"I… understand." Near says, watching over my shoulder, his eyes picking out the patterns in the letters very easily. "It says… "L, do you know Gods of Death love apples?""

"Yes." I agree, now that the anagram is finally unravelled in front of us. "Or in other words, someone with access to classified information is playing a game with us."

"Well, at least we are aware now." Near says gravely, sweeping up all of the pieces in his arms, like treasured toys. "I will get these to our evidence bank."

"If you could leave quickly, Near." Mello says all of a sudden, in a somewhat strangled voice. He's still looking at me, and meeting his eyes I feel myself go pale.

_Uh-oh_, I think, as Near closes the door behind him.

* * *

MELLO

"You… stupid, _stupid_ boy." I say, as calmly as I can manage, through gritted teeth. "I thought Kira had you. I thought you could be _dead_."

"M-Mells, I just needed to -"

"I _thought_," I snarl, dangerously closely to entirely losing my temper, "You were _dead_."

"I know you did. But I had to do it this way, or you would have -"

"Matt. Shut up." I tell him, walking closer to him until we're face to face. "I worried about you so much. I could barely sleep for worrying. I've spent the last few days trying to figure out ways of getting past the security system to look for you. I _told_ you to go to Roger!"

"I just -"

"Shut _UP_, Matt!" I yell now, grabbing him by the shoulders again, making him look at me, making him see how he's made me feel. "I don't care what you thought you were doing! If you ever, _ever_ pull a stunt like that again I will _personally_ drag you to Wammy's House, take you down to the basement, and lock you in!"

"Mello." He whimpers, quietly, and I know now that he understands what he did. He understands how upset I am. But that doesn't make it all better.

"You're going to England tomorrow." I tell him, letting go of his shoulders and heading for the door.

"No!" I'm startled by how desperately he grabs onto my arm, and that note of panic in his voice. "You can't send me away, Mello, I mean it."

"Can, and will." I snap. "It's supposed to be for your own safety, moron!"

"Fuck you." He says, suddenly beginning to cry behind the goggles. "If you can really send me away then you don't care for me at all."

"Don't be so fucking ridiculous." I bite out, trying not to soften. "I'm sending you away because I love you and I don't want you to die."

"You'd rather break my heart, huh?"

"Yes!" I shout, all the anger suddenly flooding back to me. "If that's what it takes to keep you alive, then yes! How can I do my job if you die? How can I give a shit about the world if it doesn't have you in it?"

"Fine." Matt snaps, lifting the goggles slightly to run his sleeve across his eyes. "If you send me away, I'll kill myself."

After a moment of silence, I turn away from him and walk back towards the door. "Don't threaten me with things you can't follow through on."

"You don't think I mean it?" Matt says, fully crying now. "I do. I mean it. I'll do it. You're such a bitch, Mello, don't fucking send me away!"

I don't say anything; just open the door, and walk through it, and lock it behind me. I take a moment, take a deep breath, and then go in search of Near.

* * *

NEAR

I waited patiently for five minutes, maybe less; and now, as I predicted, Mello is at my door.

"Come in." I say gravely, still studying the card I found upon my return, redundant now in terms of a clue.

"Near, I want you to organise another flight to England."

"You do realise, Mello, that he will only try to run away again?"

"Not if someone responsible is with him." Mello says. "Gevanni, or Lester."

"Maybe even Lidner." I muse, nodding in a satisfied way. "As I have said; If there are two of us, we will surpass L."

There is a moment of silence; I turn to see Mello glaring at me, as if some switch in his brain has been turned on.

"There are three, bitch." He snaps. "Matt's staying here. But you make sure no one here knows about it, alright?"

"Alright." I reply mildly, placing the new card neatly on top of the others as he storms out of the room.

I know, I know. It was risky. But I had it certain that, faced with this saying again, there was a seventy-four percent chance of Mello changing his mind. And I was right. Now that I have both Matt and Mello exactly where I want them, the investigation can really begin.

* * *

A/N: Oooh, that crafty Near. So, don't forget to send me a word suggestion; reviews are also very much appreciated!


	10. A Lesson in Discovering: Cornucopia

A/N: Sorry that it's late, I'm very busy lately and this chapter is slightly longer than usual. Anyway, better late than never, right? The chapter's title comes from a suggestion by Svadilfari.

* * *

Chapter Ten - Cornucopia

MATT

I haven't forgiven him. I might be laying here in his arms, in the bed we're once again sharing, smiling, but that doesn't mean I've forgiven him. You can be happy and also angry at the same time, right? Well, I am, anyway. Even if I am confined to this floor, I'm glad he didn't send me away. I'm also quite appreciative of the fact that, for as long as I remain pissed off at him, he seems determined to do anything to make it up to me. So what if I'm milking it a bit? This is Mello - as soon as he thinks he's atoned he'll go back to being the bossy, grumpy, demanding Mello I know (and love), so I'm just treasuring getting my own way for a change.

As far as the investigation goes, I'm supposed to carry on with what I was doing - looking through L and Wammy's old notes, trying to figure something out. We looked back over all the surveillance a couple of days ago, and there was nothing on the cameras at any time that the little gifts we got were dropped; they all just appear there. Which makes me very, very suspicious.

When Mello's out during the day, with the rest of the investigation team, I get my laptop set up and hack in to the security camera system, trying to figure out what happened. Of course I'm a genius, so it doesn't take me long to find out how those things mysteriously appear: some has been hacking in to our cameras. I'm relieved to find there haven't been any attacks on our main computer - it's pretty sturdy anyway, considering I helped build it myself - but the footage on the screens is all looped seamlessly to cover the missing footage. That tells me that whoever I'm dealing with has some technical know-how, and is subtle enough not to flag up any alerts before now.

Which to be honest is a little reassuring, because the only other explanation that came to my mind was one I don't really want to consider: the possibility that a Shinigami was leaving those things for us. I remember Ryuk with a shudder, Light Yagami's guardian angel who turned on him at the very end, with that chilling smile. It had almost been long enough for me to pretend to myself that those things never happened, that they were just a bad dream; but now here they are again, quite literally back to haunt us.

The idea of haunting sets me on another track. I remember how creepy it was when we got those beyond-the-grave messages from Kira, and as I think about mine and Mello's a theory jumps onto my head, a theory that makes me blood run cold. The kind of theory where I actually want to be wrong.

The only way to prove it is to talk to Near, but of course he's downstairs with the rest of the team, and I don't really have any way to get his attention without also getting theirs. Even a phone call would be suspicious, and all calls are recorded here anyway, just in case they become evidence.

Which means I have to wait.

It seems that's all I do, these days. Come up with great theories, and then wait around for Mello and Near to decide to listen to me.

* * *

MELLO

Shiiiiit. I can't fucking believe what I'm hearing. I mean… Jesus. _Seriously_.

All of them, dead in one day? All of them?!

I guess I'm just rambling on ahead, and this makes not a lot of sense, but Jesus Christ, I'm in shock. It's all over every news channel, everyone's talking about the return of Kira.

In all the time Matt and I have been back in Japan, no one died. Matsuda gathered the names of criminals every day, and every day Aizawa checked up on where they were and if they were still alive. Not a single one passed away. There wasn't even a single prison brawl that ended badly. The ones that were still on the run seemed to find really good hiding places for a while. They seemed… _safe_.

But today, at exactly 12 noon, every single fucking criminal that has appeared on Japanese news channels in the last month has died. We checked every name, and then double checked, and then triple checked. Not a single one survived. What's more, there were no deaths that were not on our lists as having featured in the news.

It baffles me, slightly. Obviously Kira wanted to make an impact… but why start, and then stop again, only to kill everyone at once? Why stop just to coincide with the arrival of Matt and I? Why attack now? There are so many unanswered questions that I don't know what to think.

It's clear, though, that this is a very new, very different Kira. The only messages he has left were those that were personal to the three of us, the three heirs - there was no public sign, such as Light Bastard Yagami left - although of course the message this Kira did leave us echoed the original. I feel that he - or she - is playing with us. Taunting us. And that _really_ pisses me off.

Everyone in the investigation centre is on edge. Suddenly there really is so much more at stake. Already the television stations are broadcasting Kira specials, the websites have gone into overdrive with declarations of approval or of hatred. At least this time some people see sense, though of course the majority are as they always have been: mindless supporters of Kira who see only the "good" he does now and not the potential for total injustice and chaos later. It doesn't matter who he kills, whether they deserve it or not. He's still a murderer.

Near sits in his chair curling his hair around one finger and watching everyone, occasionally asking quiet questions of certain people as to what they have or haven't checked. I attack a bar of chocolate, snapping it loudly with my teeth to take out some of the anger and frustration I'm feeling. Everyone else is checking, cross-checking, frantic and pretty much out of their depth, though I hate to say it. Though with a case like this, the only people who could be _in_ their depth are people like us. Wammy's boys. Freaks. I wonder how my life would have been if I'd just been an ordinary police officer.

That's how we all are when Gevanni bursts in. He's wearing a suit and carrying a motorcycle helmet and a leather jacket in one hand, and looks like he just ran up the street.

"Near, I have an urgent report." He says, a little out of breath. "I came here immediately - after I saw the news I knew it couldn't wait. It was too risky to phone you. The Mafia bosses know who I'm working for by now, so the operation is over."

Mafia bosses? Urgent report? Operation? Whatever Near's been keeping me out of, I want in.

"Let us go discuss this elsewhere." Near says blandly, not even appearing surprised (that bastard). As he and Gevanni start to leave I get up and follow them. Near casts me a curious look but says nothing, and it kind of grates that he's just permitting me to go, as if it's only by his good grace that I know anything at all.

We settle down in another room, and Gevanni begins his report, giving me a little preamble - which is actually even more irritating, because he just assumes that I'm in the dark. Doesn't anyone give me a little credit around here?

"I've been posing as a member of the Mafia for a while, keeping my ear to all the news running through the underground crime networks. Today, they're all in a panic. Except for this one guy - the boss of the group I infiltrated. Surprisingly for the Mafia, he's a foreigner. I understand he killed the last boss, and quite a few others, until no one dared argue with his position. His name is Lars Kilrok, otherwise known as 'Arik the Viking'."

I raise my eyebrows, unimpressed. "Kira backwards? Mixed with a Norse reference?"

"Yes; terribly clichéd, isn't it? Anyway, he called all of his part of the family together today, for a meeting. He seemed smug about something, and when the others started talking about the return of Kira and their own impending deaths he just started to laugh.

"We all waited for an explanation, and when he finally calmed down he explained everything. He used all the money from his last few jobs - over one hundred thousand dollars, I'm not sure of the amount in Japanese currency - to pay off Kira. Apparently Kira contacted him, and offered him a unique deal. That money means that no matter what happens, so long as they don't get put into jail for a sentence of more than a year, his men will not die. Basically it means they can get caught for any number of minor offences and survive, and if they're clever enough to not get caught they can live out a long, long life of crime."

"Kira making deals with mafia men?" I blurt out, irrationally outraged. "I thought he was supposed to represent some kind of justice against criminals? That's ridiculous!"

"I know." Gevanni nods. "I thought so too. It's very clear that we're dealing with a Kira that is different to Light Yagami. His methods, his morality, everything is different. But I think that makes him not quite as strong."

"Not quite as smart." Near nods, twisting his hair around one finger like a baby again. "We have a trail back to him now. We just have to follow it."

"Arik knew about me, though." Gevanni shrugs uncomfortably. "He revealed it right there and then, that I was working with the SPK. I'm not sure how he found out, but maybe Kira told him. I barely escaped with my life. I'm going to have to stay out of their way for a while."

"That is fine." Near says, smiling in that creepy manner only he can achieve. "We already have an undercover agent."

He turns his eyes to me, and I know straight away what he's trying to hint at. This, now _this_ is going to be extremely difficult to explain to Matt.

"… We do?" I reply, really hoping that I misread him and he's going to ask Lidner or someone to do it.

"We do, Mello." Near says, leaving me with not a shadow of doubt. Oh, Jesus. This is going to be an interesting evening.

* * *

NEAR

After all the day's work has been completed, hectic as it was, and the other members of the investigation team have left to their homes and families, I accompany Mello back to the floor he shares with Matt. We three have much to discuss, and it is essential that Matt is kept up to speed for the duration of the investigation.

When we step into their lounge area we find Matt, smoking, poring over a pile of documents, and two crumpled letters in particular. My curiosity is piqued. I cannot help but wonder what it is that he is perusing.

"Mells! Near! Great, I've been waiting all day!" Matt says, jumping up excitedly and grinning.

"Matt… you haven't been watching the surveillance cameras, have you?" Mello says, groaning.

"What? No… I've been down here… why, is… is something wrong?" Matt replies, the smile falling off his face to be replaced by an expression of worry.

Mello fills him in as I wait patiently, and silently, for them to finish. Once Matt has been through all the expected reactions I raise my voice.

"What is it that you were waiting for?" I ask him, cutting through his shock.

"Oh, yes!" Matt says, brandishing the two letters. They are closed, and I cannot yet guess what is inside them; but his words tell me immediately what they are. "Do you still have the note Light Yagami left for you, after he died."

"He left it previous to his death, I believe, Matt. But yes, I have it."

"Well, what does it say?"

I stare at him evenly for a long moment. "Matthew, I thought we had all three agreed to keep this from each other."

"Mm, it's Matt." Matt replies almost automatically, holding up the letters again. "I'll show you mine if you tell me what yours says. I have a theory as to what they mean."

"I would like to see yours first, if I may."

Matt shrugs casually. I suppose my suggestion is not much of a bargaining chip, given that he would like all three in the open; much as I expected, he opens one of the plain envelopes and draws out a slip of paper.

"_This is not game over_." I read aloud, before deciding to humour him. "Suitably cryptic. Well, my message was '_Your house of cards will fall down_.' Does that help your theory?"

"Yes!" Matt shouts in delight. "I knew it! Listen, Mello's is '_Each bite brings you closer to death'_! Do you see?"

"Ah." I nod with a small, humourless smile. "They correspond with our little gifts. I received cards, Mello a foodstuff, and you a game object. That is well planned."

"It's worrying, is what it is." Mello says, chewing his lip thoughtfully. "You realise what it means about Kira, don't you?"

"Yes." I reply blandly. "Whoever is Kira now knows of the actions of the previous Kira, to the extent of being able to play a trick on us that was set up by Light Yagami."

"That," Matt agrees, "Or he _is_ Light Yagami."

"Or in contact with him." Mello replies.

"I am not superstitious." I tell them. "I am ninety-nine percent certain that ghosts do not exist, nor do I believe in the possibility of communication from beyond the grave. You two are being disappointingly speculative."

"Sure." Matt mutters. "I'll remember that when things start floating around the room on their own."

* * *

A/N: Spooky goings-on, or superstition? You'll have to wait until the next update for another clue :) Don't forget to suggest a chapter title if you review!


	11. IMPORTANT NOTICE

**IMPORTANT NOTICE**

To all readers:

As you are no doubt aware, it is that wonderful time of year - exam season! I am currently taking five A-Levels and my exams start tomorrow, so as you can imagine life is pretty hectic right now. On top of that I've got duties with my karate club (I'm a coach, so no getting out of that one), family duties, work, and so on… The long and short of this is that I don't have the time right now to bring you another chapter of Kriminalist II, and as much as I'd love to promise you'll get it next week, I can't promise that either. The schedule WILL go ahead as planned - this is not a hiatus - but at some point in the near future I will add an extra chapter in there so that we catch up from missing this week. Please be patient with me - believe me, I'd much rather be writing fanfics than revising ;)

In the meantime, here is a brain-teaser to set your detective skill to:

A traveller arrives in a small town and decides he wants to get a haircut. There are only two barbershops in town - one on East Street and one on West Street. The East Street barbershop is a mess, and the barber has the worst haircut the traveller has ever seen. The West Street barbershop is neat and clean, its barber's hair looks as good as a movie star's.

Which barbershop does the traveller go to for his haircut, and why?

Until next update;

Narni4eva


	12. A Lesson in Discovering: Kerfuffle

A/N: Alright, guys, we're back in business. It's been a very trying month, but I hope I can now resume where I left off without disappointing too many people! I hope to get the chapter I owe you all up as soon as possible. The title of this chapter was suggested by TheColourBlue, and it is also the last chapter of this particular lesson, in which you will find a new narrator. With no further delay - here it is!

* * *

Chapter Eleven - Kerfuffle

MATSUDA

Work the next day is chaotic, as everyone begins to argue. I hate it when everyone argues. Our headquarters is usually a place of peace and friendship, and besides, I always lose. I don't think that's fair!

I was here on the original investigation too, but no one takes me seriously. I don't know why, because I really did help last time! Even though no one suspected Light-san of being Kira, I was part of the team that finally took him down. So it stands to reason that my opinion in this new Kira case might be valid!

Anyway, I arrive at the headquarters in the morning to find everyone dressed in black and looking very serious. No one had told me we would be so formal this morning! I am wearing a navy blue suit, so I feel a little out of place right away. I make some coffee for everyone so that they might cheer up a little - it's so tense in the investigation room sometimes - and we all start to work.

"Well," says Aizawa after a while, breaking the silence, "It seems that we have a bigger problem than before, wouldn't you agree?"

"Mm." Lidner nods. "Now we know the new Kira really means business."

"That's not what I was referring to." Aizawa replies. "I meant that we have watched all the Japanese news channels during the investigation, and many criminals only appeared on local news stations for local crimes. This means that the new Kira has access to all the information resources that we do."

"We're playing catch-up." Gevanni agrees. "Being on the street for so long, I didn't hear of many of these criminals, so whoever it is is still ahead of us."

I look at him curiously. "Gevanni, you're back in the office so suddenly. Where have you been all of this time?"

"Secret mission." Gevanni clears his throat uncomfortably. "Sorry, only Near can tell you that."

"Here, the office is under surveillance." Yamamoto says slowly. "If you have been elsewhere, then… you could have been doing anything, with the knowledge of no one here."

"What do you mean?" Gevanni asks sharply.

"You could have come in any number of times to read our lists, or taken them a few days ago to check them. What have you got to hide, Gevanni? Why don't we know your real name, either? You know ours."

"Yamamoto, I don't think you quite realise the gravity of what you are suggesting." Aizawa says, calmly, looking at his younger colleague admonishingly.

"I'm sorry, Chief," Yamamoto apologises, "But you must admit that it is suspicious."

"Near knows what he's doing." Aizawa says confidently, and the room falls into a pause of silence.

"Where is Near, anyway? And Mello?" Yamamoto asks after a moment.

"They're having some sort of meeting." Lester replies quietly from his desk. "Apparently they had a revelation of sorts last night."

"They're planning something without telling us again?"

"It's for safety."

"Huh. We have to tell them everything we do!"

"Yamamoto." Aizawa said firmly. "I will not tell you again. Are you a part of this team, or would you prefer some gardening leave?"

"Sorry, Chief."

"That's what I thought."

"But, one thing." I say. "Aren't we most likely to be under suspicion? Yamamoto and me and Chief, I mean. We're the ones who wrote and checked the lists, so we had most access to them. Do you think Near will suspect us now?"

"No, we're members of this team, and he trusts us." Aizawa assures me.

"Then why won't they tell us what they're doing?" Yamamoto cuts in. "I bet they do suspect you, Matsuda-san. I've heard you talk about Light Yagami."

"I still wonder if we really did the right thing." I sigh, thinking again of my old friend. It seems very strange to me, still, that he could have been Light Yagami and also Kira at the same time. But then, appearances are usually deceptive, something I've had to learn.

"Of course we did." Aizawa replies, his usual response to this kind of discussion.

"But until now the crime rates were soaring. Now crime will go down again and the world will be a better place to live in. Many of the criminals would have been sentenced to death anyway, so it's not like Kira is murdering all of them, and many of them have already taken lives anyway."

"Matsuda-san, please stop talking like people dying is actually a good thing." Yamamoto says.

"The new Kira is corrupt, no matter what your opinion on the last is." Near announces from the back of the room, and we all turn to look. He has entered with Mello, and is gazing dispassionately at us, obviously having listened to our discussion. "Would you like to know why the new Kira must be stopped, Matsuda?"

I bow my head, feeling uncomfortable that he may now have more reason to suspect me than before, nervous that he might take me off the case. "Yes, please, Near-san."

* * *

MELLO

That idiot Matsuda spouting off about Bastard Yagami… what a surprise. He's always taking the understanding route, being all compassionate and trying to excuse the actions of criminals - it even says so in his file. He's not dangerous, just an idiot, and he's put enough people behind bars that we can at least trust him to do his job no matter what his opinion on the matter.

At least we can tell him now, and all the others, that the new Kira is a fake. This guy clearly has no interest in making the world a better place if he can get a profit out of it.

As Near fills the team in on the bribe Kira took from Arik the Viking, I watch their faces carefully. I see shock, disgust, even anger; and I know that this team is a good team. If anyone can catch Kira, it's us. With Matt upstairs doing work behind the scenes, the SPK working here, and me doing undercover surveillance on the mafia gang, it will be easy to get the better of the new Kira. Make no mistake - this is not Light Yagami, who, though I hate him, I have to admit was intensely smart. This new Kira is only a shadow of the last, and I see it only as luck that he has evaded us thus far.

"Lastly," Near is saying, "There will be a slight adjustment to our headquarters set-up. Mello will be leaving us for an indefinite amount of time to carry out another area of investigation elsewhere, so for the meantime I want Lidner to take over checking the internet. Lester, you'll carry on your cross-referencing to find a pattern, but without Lidner's help. Is that clear with everyone?"

"Where is Mello-san going?" Matsuda asks, looking all naïve and curious.

"That is confidential, Matsuda. Also, since the deaths have now begun in earnest, Gevanni will be checking major international news channels for reports on criminals, while you yourself stay with the Japanese stations." Near pauses, and glances around. "So, if everyone understands, let's get back to work. I'll be escorting Mello to his new post."

There are a smattering of nods around the room, and the members of the SPK go back to work. Near and I back up to my floor, and suddenly everything is beginning to feel very real. I wonder if I'm still up to this.

I finish packing and sit down on the bed next to Matt. He hasn't been saying much - just watching me, and pretending to play on his DS - so I loop an arm around his shoulders and pull his head down into the crook of my neck.

"I'll see you soon, Matt." I promise. "You'll barely notice I'm gone."

"Don't be ridiculous." Matt snorts. "I always notice when you're gone."

"Mello - brrzzt - please come back to the investigation room - brrzzt - it's urgent."

The intercom makes us both flinch, the harsh electronic buzzing cutting through our moment like a gunshot. It was Near's voice, and since he knows I'm supposed to be leaving very soon, I assume it really is very urgent. I kiss Matt lightly on the forehead and get up, going to the lift with a quiet promise to return and see him before I leave the building.

In the investigation room, everyone is hushed, standing in a semi-circle facing Near. A television screen is flickering with images from a news channel, the sound muted, the Japanese reporter's mouth opening and closing in a way that seems silly without the noise. The atmosphere in the room is troubled. I do not have long to wonder what has happened.

"Mello. It is good that you have joined us." Near nods. "In the last ten minutes, a children's hospital in Tokyo has revealed that they received an anonymous donation of over one hundred thousand dollars last night."

The numbers click. "The exact amount that Arik the Viking paid Kira?"

"Yes. The exact amount."

I sink into a chair, thinking rapidly. "So Kira took the bribe, and then gave it away? To what end?"

"To save the children." Matsuda puts in. "The new Kira _is_ honourable! He's following Light's code of creating a better world."

"Matsuda-san, please." Yamamoto says. "Kira is far from honourable. He is a murderer."

"Near, I think I need to leave immediately." I say, hearing my own words come as if from a distance. "It's now essential for me to work quickly."

"Yes." Near agrees. "It's time for the SPK to step this investigation up a gear."

* * *

A/N: So, things are really heating up! Please review and let me know what you think of Matsuda's first POV section, and don't forget to suggest a word for a chapter title!


	13. A Lesson in What Must Be Done: Kvetch

A/N: Ahhh, I forgot to note in the last chapter - some of the phrases said by Matsuda and Yamamoto are quotes from chapter 108 and from the Extra Note. That aside, it is time to begin the next lesson. The chapter's title comes from both jjwitdaheydiddydiddy and TheColourBlue, the only word that's been suggested twice.

* * *

**A LESSON IN WHAT MUST BE DONE**

* * *

Chapter Twelve - Kvetch

MELLO

It's time.

I step out of the car and onto the dusty Tokyo pavement, taking a deep breath of the outside air. The taxi driver doesn't even turn off the engine as I hop out, dragging my suitcase behind me, and as soon as I pay him his measly fare he zooms off into the crowded streets. Obviously he does not think much to staying around in this area, when there are paying customers elsewhere.

I look up at the building I am going to be staying in for the duration of my time with the Mafia; not the entirety of the building, but a one-bedroom flat some four storeys above where I stand. Because of course, I am a fan of stairs.

The stairs in question smell like piss, and my suitcase drags annoyingly behind me. It's full of chocolate, leather, and a bottle of whiskey that I made Near buy me as part of my condition of putting my life even more on the line than it already was. It's a little frustrating to think that back in LA we were raking in dollars by the thousands, living in our own private mansion, and now here I am, back where I started.

Oh, the Mafia. How I've missed all the danger. The broken windows and TV dinners, because you spent all the cash from the last heist on trying to impress the boss. Guns beside the bed and a knife in your boot just in case. The thrill of the chase. I can't say that I'm entirely regretting the decision to come back, if I'm honest, I kind of enjoy it.

I don't bother to unpack when I reach my new flat, just sling the suitcase under the bed. Thankfully it came with the furniture, or I think Near would actually have just let me sleep on the floor. I guess I can't blame him. Even someone like Near understands that you can't spend all of this money on high-tech equipment and expect it to never run out. He's paying my rent, at least, so that's something I can thank him for.

Several hours pass as I sit and wait for night to fall, running through the old routines in my head to make sure I still remember them all. This should be easy, like getting back on the horse, and who is still around to remember me from last time? I doubt even my reputation still exists.

Arik the Viking. I flick through his file one last time, and then carefully set fire to it with a lighter I stole from Matt (he won't mind, I'm sure). It won't help me at all to be caught with it, and there's some pretty incriminating stuff in there. Old Arik's only been in jail once - for petty theft, which he was let out for early on good behaviour - but the list of suspected crimes is as long as my arm. Armed robbery, extortion, murder, the usual - he's a Mafia man through and through, but he's keeping his hands clean enough that no one can get close to him. Which stops now.

When darkness falls I head to the restaurant owned by Arik's brother, and take a seat at the bar, ordering a vodka to start the night off. I have to appear as a real customer, of course, but I don't mind having a drink anyway. Before long I spot one of the men I'm after - an accomplice to the petty theft Arik was put away for, his right-hand man, known as Joey Guiseppi. Apparently he was around long before Arik took over the Mafia family, and he stayed on without any challenge to his authority - essentially making him the perfect side-kick. He's going to be my in, but he doesn't know it yet.

"Joey Guiseppi, right?" I slide across to him and say, putting on a slight German accent to match my looks and put him at his ease; these guys don't really like Americans or Englishmen, but there's a fair number of Europeans in their ranks, not least Guiseppi himself.

"That's right. Who are you?"

"Dieter Durnström." I lie easily. "I'm kind of new in town. Let me buy you a drink."

* * *

MATT

Every moment that Mello is out there, I worry for him. The first time this happened I was blissfully unaware, secreted away in Wammy's House and completely out of the loop, so although I wondered what he was up to I never really worried. But now I'm just terrified for his life. Last time he came out scarred; what if this time he comes off worse?

All I do all day is work through the old files I found - most of them completely useless to the current investigation - and wait for Mello's first report. Once Near gets it he'll pass the information directly to me and allow me to follow all the leads by hacking as many databases as I so wish, probably getting myself in trouble since I don't much care for the slow and careful approach right now. By the end of the day - the time when Mello would usually come upstairs to our rooms - I'm so lonely and bored and worried I hardly know what to do with myself. I can't find my favourite lighter, either, even though I _know_ I left it on the bedside table. In some sort of desperate attempt to cheer myself up I start playing through the surveillance footage of the last day in the investigation room, fast-forwarding through the uninteresting hours of work and playing it at normal speed whenever it looks like something interesting is happening. Several times I'm disappointed to hear that what looks like activity is simply someone going for a coffee round, but in the end I hear something worthwhile.

On the flickering screen, Near is standing, addressing everyone. It seems that he is responding to some sort of challenge, and I rewind just a little, to see what has happened.

"Near-sama…" Yamamoto is the one to speak, with respect, as if such a respecting lexis can disguise the truth of his meaning. "Where is Mello-san?"

Near looks up, as if puzzled that such a man as Yamamoto should even speak to him in the first place unless to reveal some new lead. "He is furthering the investigation elsewhere." He replies shortly, and returns to his previous task.

"Where is elsewhere?" Yamamoto presses. "And what is he doing to further the investigation?"

Near looks at him again, as if seeing him for the first time. "That is confidential."

"Why is it?" Yamamoto demands. "It seems to me that you know everything about us - including our identities - and we don't even get to know what you're planning. Why should we trust you when you keep secrets from us?"

The rest of the team wait in stunned silence, none of them raising their voices to either stop or support Yamamoto, but every eye in the room is glued to Near's face.

"Very well." Near says finally. "Mello is working undercover as part of the Mafia gang that paid the bribe to Kira."

Chaos immediately erupts. Most of the investigation team seem to feel that Mello should not be placed into such a dangerous situation, especially considering both his history with the Mafia and his value to Kira as one of the heirs of L. I fast-forward, suddenly not wanting to hear this discussion.

I get to the end of the day and the investigation room empties, so I go to stop the video; but even as I do so, someone re-enters the office. I press play quickly and watch; it's Matsuda, and he's left his jacket behind - such a typical Matsuda action.

As I watch, though, someone else enters, and the telltale glasses mark it out as Yamamoto. He strides over to Matsuda, who is shuffling through some of his paperwork and stuffing it into a drawer.

"Hey, Matsu, what are you doing? Hurry up, I want to get home." Yamamoto says, and the strangeness of this hits me immediately until I remember that the two of them carpool.

"Yeah, sorry." Matsuda replies, and then hesitates. "Why did you speak out against Near today, Itsuki?"

Ah, yes, I remember reading his file - Yamamoto's given name is Itsuki. It's kind of a cute name, actually. Makes him sound like a puppy.

"Because he shouldn't keep us in the dark." Yamamoto replies, but Matsuda shakes his head.

"But don't you see? If Kira is on the investigation team, now he knows where Mello is."

"If Kira was on the team we'd all be dead!"

"No, because we're not criminals. Killing us would go against Kira's utopia, because we are the ones who are supposed to keep justice."

"Does it really matter? Near still needs to be honest with us."

"I just wish you wouldn't stir things up like that… maybe Near will grow suspicious of you and investigate privately, and then he'll find out…"

"You're still nervous about that?" Yamamoto sighs angrily, and pushes his glass back up his nose. "Why are you so ashamed about us?"

"I'm not ashamed, I just -"

"If you're not ashamed then there's no problem with anyone finding out, is there?"

"Itsu…"

"Don't try and sweet-talk me out of this one, Matsuda." Yamamoto snaps. "If you can't handle people knowing that we're in a relationship, maybe we shouldn't _be_ in one."

I'm watching this with baited breath, like some kind of soap opera. It's weird, I didn't get any gay vibes from Yamamoto. I mean, Matsuda, sure - I've never seen him with a girl, anyway - but Yamamoto? This is a shocker! Matsuda stiffens visibly on the screen, and his tone turns cold, so I guess what Yamamoto said must've really got to him.

"Is that really how you feel, Itsuki?" He asks, not looking at the younger man.

There is a pause, and Yamamoto lets out a breath. "No. You know I want to be with you. It's just hard when you don't act like you feel the same."

"I do, I promise." Matsuda goes over to him, and enfolds him in his arms, looking him directly in the eye. "Once all of this stupid Kira stuff is finished with we'll tell everyone, okay? I just don't think anyone's in the right mood for it, they're all so stressed."

"Alright…" Yamamoto sighs. "You win, Matsu. But if we don't make an announcement as soon as the case is over we're finished, and I mean that."

"We will!" Matsuda chirps cheerfully. "Now come on, let's get to the car. I know a nice empty little flat a few blocks away that's just begging for some company."

As the two of them file out, Matsuda's arm around Yamamoto's waist, I stop the recording and lean back, thinking this over. It's a bombshell, and I really wish I could tell Mello. I bet he'd be really happy for them, but it's too dangerous to just call him up over unnecessary little things. I miss him. I wonder what he's doing right now… With a sigh, I turn off the screen I was watching and head back to a cold, empty bed, knowing it has to be like this if we want to stop a murderer.

* * *

A/N: Thus, a revelation! Please review, suggest a word, and stay tuned for the next chapter!


	14. A Lesson in What Must Be Done:Dissonance

A/N: Ahaha… many people reviewed liking the pairing in the last chapter, so… I can only hope those people don't wish to shoot me after reading this one. Sorry, guys! Maybe if you're good I'll come up with a MatsuYama oneshot XD This chapter's title was suggested by jjwitdaheydiddydiddy. By the way, I now have enough titles to see me through to the end, so suggestions are closed!

* * *

Chapter Thirteen - Dissonance

NEAR

The day began as a normal day in the investigation centre. First to arrive was Chief Aizawa, with Lester and Lidner coming in soon after him. One by one the members of the team file into the building, going through the security checks with practised ease, and taking their positions in front of their monitors and desks.

Matsuda arrives a few minutes late, looking slightly dishevelled; I notice that his tie is slightly wonky, as if done up in a hurry and not checked with the use of a mirror. He ducks his head as he enters, but seems very tired.

After some more time has passed, I look up from my work to see that we are still missing one member of the team. Frowning, I stand, and approach something nearing the centre of the room.

"Where is Yamamoto? Has anyone seen him?" I ask, and there are several murmured negative replies accompanied by shaking heads. Matsuda looks a trifle nervous.

"Near - that is, L," He begins, seeming strangely timid, "Perhaps, if you like, I could go look for him."

I look at him for a long moment. "The two of you carpool, is that not correct?"

Matsuda nods.

"Then why did you not carpool this morning?"

"Ah…" Matsuda looks around, almost fearfully. "It's actually a personal matter, and I'd be grateful if -"

"This is serious, Matsuda-san." I tell him, deliberately trying to sound naïve. "Please tell us everything you know concerning Yamamoto-san's disappearance. Something may have happened to him."

"Ah, well…" Matsuda sighs, and looks down for a moment, as if coming to a point he knows he cannot return from. "You see, Yamamoto and I… in fact, we live together."

"What? Since when?" Aizawa cuts in, astonished.

"Since… quite some time, actually. You see, we're… well, we're… lovers."

There is a collective gasp from those in the investigation room, but I am unfazed. It makes no difference in my eyes, be they friends, lovers, or brothers. They had a close relationship, that was always clear; the form it takes is irrelevant.

"So, why did he not come with you this morning?" I press, keeping to the matter in hand.

"Oh, last night we had… a bit of a row. Two rows, in fact. One just before we left here, and one at home. Itsuki told me to leave - he was really very angry - so last night I slept in my car. It was… it was just a row, though, and I'm sure we'll be alright. Perhaps he has just overslept, since it's me who usually wakes him up." Matsuda confesses, looking earnestly around for reassurance that his theory is probably correct. "At any rate, it's me who should look for him."

"I agree." I say brusquely. "Please bring your keys, Matsuda-san. We will go immediately to the house you share together."

"W-we?" Matsuda stammers, obviously not having expected my participation. "Alright…"

We leave behind an investigation room that will, I have no doubt, erupt into idle gossip as soon as we leave the room. It is of no moment; they will calm down and do their work, because they know how important it is that we succeed in catching this imitation Kira.

Matsuda drives the car to a quiet district some distance from the investigation headquarters, and parks outside of a modest house which even has its own driveway, and a car already on it. On seeing Yamamoto's car parked here in such a way, Matsuda seems concerned, and expresses to me the hope he had held that we would merely miss Yamamoto as he headed towards the investigation headquarters himself. It is clear, however, that he has not left the house since the night before.

On entering the house Matsuda calls out for Yamamoto - calling him by his given name of Itsuki - several times, but there is no reply. I wait respectfully downstairs as he advances to check the bedroom, but when he utters a low cry I hasten to join him. I find him sitting on the edge of the bed, where Yamamoto appears to be peacefully sleeping; but by the way Matsuda cradles him I can tell this is not the case. Itsuki Yamamoto is dead.

"I- Itsu…" Matsuda whimpers, tears openly streaming down his face. "I didn't mean what I said… I'm sorry…"

I leave the room quietly, and call Lester. He answers on the second ring.

"Lester, please tell the team. The new Kira has succeeded in penetrating our security measures. Yamamoto has been killed by him. We are now at a dangerous stage of proceedings."

* * *

MATT

I just… can't believe it. Yesterday they seemed so good together, and I could see the love that existed between them. Today…? Though I know I should feel sympathy and pity for Matsuda, I cannot help but worry even more about Mello. What if Kira knows that he is undercover? If I think about such things I will go mad.

When Near returns he sends me a message over the computer system that, when everyone else is gone later tonight, he will allow me to call Mello for the first pre-arranged check-up. I need to hear his voice, I need to know that he is alive and well. That is all I care about for the moment.

The hours drag painfully by. Downstairs the team are silent and cheerless, and Matsuda has been told in no uncertain terms to stay away from the investigation headquarters so that he can recover. The monitors hold no interest for me, but I can't concentrate on these old files either. I've only got one box left. Surely if I just leave it for a day, there will be no real harm done? There hasn't been anything useful in the other boxes, really, anyway.

I hate waiting. That's why I love to play action games - everything happens all at once, and the puzzle and all of the clues are there for you to solve straight away. I hate not knowing what's happening. I hate the thought that Mello might be in danger while I read dry case notes.

Finally the end of the day comes, and I head down to the investigation room when Near calls me, feeling strangely like an intruder in a place I used to work. The call will be recorded, in case we need to replay it later or in case we can use it as evidence, so we have to run it through the main system instead of using a mobile or anything. I guess I won't go into all of that technical stuff, since it bores even me.

It seems to take an age for the call to connect, even though Mello should have been expecting it. A shiver of fear runs through me, but it is thankfully unwarranted. After a small click, Mello's voice comes over the line, clear and welcome.

"Hi, Dieter speaking."

"Hi, Dieter." I tease, grinning, even though he can't see me.

"Oh, good, it's you. How are you, Matt?"

"I'm…" I hesitate. "I miss you."

"I know. I'm the same. Just be patient."

"I'm trying. And -"

"Sorry to interrupt," Near says, in a manner completely lacking in remorse, "But this is supposed to be a report. We may not have much time, please proceed quickly."

"Yes, N." Mello snaps into the receiver, and for once I share his anger. It's true, though, that we need to make it quick. "I'm getting closer, but of course it's hard to gain their trust. I may have to involve myself in a few less-than-legal activities to get in with Arik."

Near sighs. "So long as you don't tell me about it, I suppose I'll have no need to warn the police."

"Yeah, I thought as much. Keeping your hands clean, huh, Near?" Mello says, a trifle sardonically. "I guess I should expect that from the world's best detective."

"Mello," I interrupt, wanting to get him up to date before he needs to go, "There's something you should know."

"You're telling him now?" Near asks, one eyebrow raised the slightest fraction, though the question is deadpanned.

"Yes. Mello, it's about Yamamoto." I hesitate. "He's dead. Kira… Kira found him."

"_Shit_." There's a pause, and then Mello continues to curse, using every language he knows how to curse in - and there are a few.

"I know." I commiserate, but even as I do so Mello's tone changes, and he puts on a German accent.

"Ja, well, I'll be seeing you, my friend. Okay, yes. Goodbye, Adam."

"Bye, Mells." I murmur sadly, hearing a door close in the background of the call before it cuts off. I stand at the desk for a few minutes more, as if by simply waiting I will speak to him again, though I know I won't get to for a while.

"Hmm; most inconvenient." Near mutters, and I turn to look at him.

"What is?"

"I wanted to give him some extra directives. Now that Kira has begun the chase in earnest, Mello will have to do some hard work to speed things up."

"So call again later." I reply. "If he can't answer he won't, so it'll be fine. He won't have to say anything incriminating, anyway, he can just pretend you're this… Adam guy again."

"Subterfuge." Near nods. "Very well."

We wait together in the investigation room, in silence, having nothing to say to each other. After a while I pull my DS out of my pocket and turn it on, just to relieve the awkward silence, and I light up a cigarette. Near probably hates the fact that I'm smoking, but he says nothing.

After what seems to have been years, Near finally turns back to the system and flicks a few buttons. "Alright, we'll call him again." He says.

This time the call connects almost instantly, and Mello's words are hushed.

"Hello? This has to be quick, I'm at Arik's headquarters."

"Listen, Mello." Near begins. "I have some extra instructions for you. It's very important that you -"

"Hang on a moment. What is it, Joey?" Mello says, slipping back into his German accent. There is the muffled sound of another voice on his end of the line, and though we can't make out the words, we can hear the fear in Mello's next words. "What do you mean? I haven't done anything."

After a few moments there is a crashing noise, and the line goes dead.

Near and I look at each other; then I run the recording back, and boost the volume. Now both of us can hear Joey Guiseppi's words.

"I think it's time you took a walk out to our special facilities, Dieter Durnström. We don't tolerate spies in our family."

"What are you talking about? I haven't done anything." Mello's voice again; I briefly wonder, with a feeling of dread, if I'm hearing his last words.

"We know you're communicating with L."

There is silence, and then the crash of the phone falling to the floor, where it cuts off.

"Lester?" Near snaps into his mobile. "Wake up, and get Gevanni. Mello has been compromised. You must act quickly to get him back."

* * *

A/N: Ooh, drama. Please review XD I'm early this week because I'm away at the Grand Prix next week, and thus would have been unable to upload the chapter. Think of it as an early bonus!


	15. A Lesson in What Must Be Done: Reprobate

A/N: I am SO tired right now, I can barely believe I've managed to write this chapter even as late as it is. I'm working really long hours right now, so I'm afraid I'm going to have to lose the schedule and just update whenever I can. Thankfully there are only three chapters left after this, so I shouldn't leave you guys hanging about for too long. This chapter's title was suggested by angellovedark.

* * *

Chapter Fourteen: Reprobate

NEAR

"Matsuda-san? Are you listening to me?" I ask seriously, not even twirling my hair for a moment to put across just how serious I am.

Matsuda nods blankly, and then carries on rearranging the files on his desk.

"Matsuda…" I hesitate, and, though I hate to do it (being unaware of what sort of places Matsuda has been recently, and of what sort of dirt might be on his clothes), I pull on his arm to make him stop moving around. "You have to listen, this is very important."

"I am listening, Near-san." Matsuda replies patiently, pausing only for a moment. "But really, I'd prefer to continue working."

I sigh. I do not understand. Aizawa suggested that the best thing to do would be to give Matsuda some leave to cope with his loss. Gardening leave, he called it. I do not see why he should be given this, since, after all, people die every day, and this is a very dangerous case, and the probability of dying is probably as much as fifty per cent or even higher for the average person walking on the street. However, Aizawa assures me it is for the best so that he can recover his mental powers and not make any mistakes while doing his part of the investigation.

Yet here is Matsuda, telling me he would rather stay and continue working. He writes down the names from the news reports in an almost mechanical way, but since he is able to write them with no mistakes I do not see why we should fear for his sanity. It is beyond me why Aizawa should insist so much.

I leave Matsuda to his own work and return to mine. So long as he does what he is supposed to do it makes no difference to me whether he stays or not. Besides, there are more pressing matters.

Firstly, the death of Yamamoto raises real concerns over the safety of our investigation team. It is true that Yamamoto died outside of the headquarters, but we have no way of knowing exactly when his name was written into the Death Note of the new Kira. For all we are aware, he could have infiltrated this very office. But who? No, there are too few leads to go on yet, there is no prime suspect as there was with Light Yagami. But we must begin from the top.

A fact we are sure of is that Kira needs to know names and faces in order to kill. But as we have also previously learned, the Shinigami eyes would allow Kira to learn the name from the face, and so there is no need to jump to the conclusion that Kira has access to police personnel files or knows the team personally. It is also true that the new Kira would only need to view Yamamoto from afar - on a bus, perhaps, or from amongst a crowd - in order to discover his name. Thus, Kira, having discovered the location of our headquarters, need only lay in wait outside in order to learn one by one the names of our investigators. In light of this, Matsuda is probably the most at risk.

However, this is conjecture and may not in fact be true; it is important to remember also that Yamamoto was a school-friend of Light Yagami's back when the original case began, and that his rise to his current position was not undocumented. A true Kira fan may well have noticed Yamamoto's previous school and the fact that he now works under Aizawa, who will most certainly have been noticed as the new Chief. This line of thought, however, only begs the question of why Aizawa is still alive, while Yamamoto is not; why the previous members of the task force - Matsuda and the others, Mogi and his comrades - have not also been killed by the Death Note.

This is a conundrum, one that I must think hard to solve; building a small card tower I think it over carefully, feeling the frustration of wondering whether L would have solved the case by now. There just aren't enough clues. We must start with the only lead we have - the Mafia boss. But where is Mello, with the information we need?

At this moment my tower-building is interrupted, by some frustrating reports. More criminals are dead. When will we stop this new Kira? He is clearly inferior to the old one, and yet… we still fail to grasp his identity. I do not understand why it is so hard for us this time around.

* * *

MATT

So many suspicions run through my head. I've been trying to work it out. The only people who knew about Yamamoto's identity, the only people who knew where Mello was going and that he was undercover, where the people in the investigation room. Yet, it seems that Kira has managed to get hold of both of these pieces of information and exploit them to his own advantage. But how?

I spend hours thinking about every member of the team - because just how much can we trust each other, anyway? How do we know that no one is passing on information to other sources? Not just Kira, but the CIA, other members of the Japanese police force, even MI5? Any member of the team could be corrupt or a double agent, any member of the team could be passing on information to corrupt sources. But why would they endanger their own lives? After facing off against Kira the first time, we all know how easily those who trust Kira can die, and there's nothing to say that this Kira isn't exactly the same as the first.

But somehow I don't buy it. How could I even begin to suspect these people, many of whom I've worked with since the Kira case in different situations? Not one of them faltered the first time around. They had the chance to cut and run and yet here they are, back for another helping. They are working on the most dangerous case possibly in the history of the world, and they remain strong and loyal every day. No, I can't suspect them. But then how did the information leak?

Then I get to thinking about one of L's old files. He had written, before the first Death Note was found, about some kind of supernatural force that could see all without being seen. At that time it was guesswork, but of course he was right; the Shinigami were watching all the time, and it was that that gave Light Yagami part of his advantage. The new Kira must have a Shinigami, too; so where is it? With him, or… with us?

The thought chills me to the bone, and it makes me realise how fragile my perceived safety up here is. Just because I'm not in the investigation room doesn't mean it's not known that I'm here. Obviously I'm not in England, as I should be, and a simple flight check would be all that was needed to ascertain that I didn't get on that plane. Kira isn't stupid, Kira can't be stupid or he wouldn't last three seconds without being caught - he, or she, or it, whoever it is now. The idea of being watched by something makes me shiver, and then I think of something else that makes me feel even worse.

The Death Note that we had, during the original investigation - didn't it say in the rules that - a human who has used it would go neither to Heaven or to Hell? Well, what does that mean, really? A state of nothingness… what is that? Could it possibly be read as meaning that the human becomes a Shinigami themselves? Could that be it?

Could it be that somewhere in this building Light Yagami is watching us all, evolved into a monster worthy of a boss battle? Could it be that he never really left, never really stopped being Kira?

* * *

MELLO

Oh, shit. Shit, shit, shit. I knew this would happen. No, I knew it _could_ happen. If I had known for sure I wouldn't even have gone undercover. But… shit. I was afraid of this.

I don't know where I am. The last thing I remember seeing was Joey Guiseppi's fist, and believe me, that guy packs a punch. My head is aching. Everything is dark, and when I go to put my hands to my head I realise they are tied tightly behind me. I'm on a chair, and when I call out the noise echoes in a really not very encouraging way. I struggle to contain my emotions, thinking things through. I don't know where I am but I do know that it's probably not a good idea for me to remain here, so the first thing to do is to get myself untied and out of this chair.

The binding around my wrists is rope, which is an encouraging sign. If it had been handcuffs I'd have been stuck, but at least this way I can try to work my way out. It's hard, but I have nothing better to do.

I don't know how much time has passed when the door at the other end of the room I'm in cracks open, allowing the thinnest stream of light and cool air. It's night time outside, but the moon is full. Arik the Viking's burly frame is silhouetted just for a moment, and then his shadowy face is leaning right into mine.

"Good evening, Princess." He says. "How was your sleep?"

"Fuck you." I spit, starting as I mean to go on. "Let me go."

"Hmmm…" Arik straightens, looks around as if thinking, and then bends down again. "No. Sorry, but you're staying here."

Shit. At least I can try to get some information out of him, but he's playing it very cool tonight. He doesn't seem to be at all flustered.

"And where is here?" I ask, after a small pause.

"This, my friend, is an abandoned warehouse. Oh!" He raises a hand to his mouth in mock self-admonition. "I shouldn't say 'friend', should I, hmm? Because you aren't our friend at all. You're Mello, friend of L… whoever that is."

"How do you know my name?" I ask, beginning to feel more and more unnerved.

"Tsk, tsk. I don't know your name, do I, Mello? That's just the stage name you hide behind. But if you must know, I found it from a very… reliable source. Kira himself."

"Kira." I mutter, bitterly, feeling hatred rise up inside of me like a wave.

"Oh, yes. The Lord of the new world himself. He will be _very_ pleased to know you're here. Especially when your pathetic friends start to look for you."

"What would he know about it? We caught every other Kira."

"You did, didn't you? You and your little Scooby gang. But you see, the new Kira has a rather large advantage on all of you. He's on the inside, you know, somewhere you'd never expect him to be. You probably look right through him a hundred times a day without realising what you're seeing. Of course, it doesn't matter for you to know this now; it's too late for you to be of use to anyone."

"You underestimate me." Mello snapped, thinking, if he's going to kill me here then at least I can anger him and make it quick.

"Really? I don't believe so. There's no way for you to get out of here. At any rate, even if your friends find out where you are there's no way they can help you. This little warehouse is my pride and joy, you know. It's unassailable."

"It's just a warehouse." I scoff. "That's no problem for the investigation team."

"Ahhh, now you underestimate _me_." Arik gives me a sinister smile, and moves closer to the door. "Do you see all these wires?"

I nod, reluctantly.

"These are special little things called tripwires. If anyone tries to open this door, or get in through any other way, they will be tripped. And when they are tripped, they will cause something very, very special to happen. Can you guess what that is, Mello?"

He comes closer to me again, and I flinch away as he grips hold of my chin, to hiss right into my face.

"A very, very, very large explosion will engulf this entire warehouse - and you - and anyone who just happens to be stood nearby."

He straightens again, letting go, and starts to laugh.

"So you'll forgive me for not hanging around, Mello! Enjoy your last hours, won't you? I hear your friends are very quick - I suspect they'll even find you before you starve to death. You see -" He pauses, now in the doorway again, nothing but a black silhouette - "That's what happens when you cross Arik the Viking."

The door slams shut, and plunges me into darkness again. The burns on my face and shoulder seem alive again tonight, burning with their old intensity. All I can think of is fire. Engulfing me. Burning me alive. Not again, Lord. No. Not again. Please. Any death but this one. Heavenly Father, please. Not the fire.

Not even trying to stop the tears that roll down my face, for the first time in many years I begin to pray.

* * *

A/N: Please review, and please also be patient with me as I struggle to get the next few chapters up.


	16. A Lesson in What Must Be Done:Dilettante

A/N: Getting these done as quickly as I can now, which I hope is not having any impact on the quality of the chapters! Not long to go… This chapter's title was from jjwitdaheydiddydiddy.

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Chapter Fifteen: Dilettante

NEAR

"It is clear that more must be done," I say, and Gevanni nods.

"Of course, it would be a great defeat for us to lose one of the three heirs of L." He replies, and though I must concede this point, I feel a flicker of irritation to be reminded that the three of us were once considered equal.

"In that light, I think it best that the members of the team each utilise their own special abilities to their utmost potential. You realise what I am saying to you, Gevanni?"

"You want me to go back and do more surveillance on the Mafia." Gevanni responds, and it is clear that this comes as no surprise to him.

"That is correct." I tell him. "It is impossible for you to go undercover again, so you'll have to keep your distance and stay to the shadows. However, it is extremely important that we find the whereabouts of Mello and that we are able to rescue him before any lasting harm is done."

"I understand." Gevanni replies, and I feel confidence in him. "I will leave immediately and restart my operation."

So, that matter is dealt with. But as much as we need to find Mello, that is only our secondary objective. In the previous case, many lives were sacrificed in order to catch Kira, and it could be that the same is true of this case. We have already lost one, and although it would be preferential to lose no more, the case comes first in front of personal safety.

That said, I have no doubt in my mind that we will catch this Kira. I can feel it. We will be successful. Sooner or later he will slip up, and that is when we will catch him. Already with this Mafia business he is untidy enough to leave a loose end; if he, Kira, attempts to kill Mello while we are aware of his whereabouts, we will have caught him immediately.

However, today dawned with unpleasant news. It seems that more criminals than ever before have died at the same time this morning, the majority of them in jail but a good many out on the streets as well. It seems that Japan's media have gone into a frenzy, deliberately re-showing details of past cases that were considered to be severe to ensure that Kira does not miss them. Every petty crime is being reported, from muggings all the way up to rapes and murders, and although the amount of crime committed on the streets has gone down, there are still a large amount of prisoners for the Kira worshippers to feast on. I am surprised that those offending channels are not shut down or made to stop, but I suppose that in this age of hysteria even those in charge have succumbed.

Those in charge; this gives me pause for thought. I think back to my own earlier musings, and wonder again whether or not it is possible for Kira to be one of the members of the team. As unlikely and unpleasant as it seems, it is nonetheless highly possible. Yamamoto, whose real name is known, was killed; Mello, who uses an alias, was simply captured when Kira leaked information to the Mafia. If the new Kira really is one of the team members, this would mean that Kira does not have the Shinigami eyes, because he is unable to kill Mello directly.

But who among the team is capable of such a thing? Aizawa, certainly, has always been seen as a pillar of justice, one of the many reasons behind his promotion to Chief in the late Yagami's place; yet, is there something that he is hiding? I recall that his daughter, Yumi, is growing up. Perhaps a father's need to protect his child has caused him to wish the world a better place? If that were the case, he certainly has the opportunity to discover the names of criminals and to write them down; he even has Matsuda collecting the names for him! Although this does make sense, I cannot help but feel that such a person as Aizawa should really be beyond suspicion, and I do not think of him as capable of mass murder, no matter his justification.

What of Matsuda himself, then? Playing the classic victim as he is; no one can corroborate that he and Yamamoto were genuinely lovers, now that Yamamoto himself has been murdered, and the pity this evokes in his fellow investigators no doubt makes him innocent in all of their minds. If it is a ploy, then writing the names down every day is a certain way to kill all the criminals he wishes. However, there are no dates on the papers he faxes to Aizawa - I've seen them with my own eyes - and he really is a simpleton, incapable of truly clever thought. I doubt highly that someone like Matsuda could get away with a thing like that right under our noses for all this time.

Matt and Mello themselves are in no way under suspicion. It's true that Mello may be faking his disappearance, and that Matt showed duplicity by returning to the headquarters instead of going to England, but Matt's worry over Mello is genuine. I know Mello well enough to know that, were he to disappear in such a way, he would make sure Matt were far away and out of danger, even if he had to tie him up or break his heart to do so. If he was acting as Kira, Mello would also, I have no doubt, target me first, bargaining for the Shinigami eyes. The fact that I am still alive is testament to their collective innocence. I am not naïve about their feelings towards me.

Lester, of course, is my guardian, and as such I know him better than anyone else. Just as it was impossible for Watari to be Kira, so it is impossible for Lester to be Kira. Since we work together during the day, and his rooms are fixed with cameras, he would have no opportunity to write in a Death Note in any case, and so I do not afford him any suspicion.

Gevanni and Lidner, I admit, are slightly less trustworthy. Gevanni was working outside of my reach for a good deal of the case, and his actions were unmonitored. Not only this, but it was his leaving the Mafia gang after supposedly being discovered that placed Mello into the position of being captured, and this could easily have been manufactured by him from an early stage. His questionable past - which I have thus far been confident is behind him - is also a matter of concern, but would he really go so far as to become the new Kira, killing thousands upon thousands of criminals - the very men he used to work with?

Lidner, too, has a past that makes me uneasy; her work as a spy created an excellent liar, and I have no doubt that she could directly lie to my face any number of times and escape detection. She too has seen a lot of injustice; could it be that she has fallen into the same thinking as Light Yagami, that the world needs to be bettered for the good of everyone in it? Her activities are freer than Lester's, though her rooms hold cameras just the same; I wonder, still, if she may have some way of slipping things past me, secretively writing down all those names without attracting attention.

It is all very perplexing. I may well be barking up the wrong tree entirely, but I can only try. Something in my blood tells me that I am looking in the right direction - all I need is proof, something unmistakeable that will tell me who is Kira. There is no time at all to waste.

* * *

MATT

I can't take it any more, being shut up in here doing nothing, while the only thing Near will do is send Gevanni to do surveillance. Surveillance! While Mello is captured by our enemy - a dangerous enemy who could even _now_ be torturing him - killing him - the only action Near is willing to endorse is to watch. I can't just stand by while this happens! I have to do _something_!

It takes me a while to think of it, but finally I know what I can do. All of my equipment is here in mine and Mello's rooms, so I set up my laptop and everything else and get ready. Once I start, I have to work fast to disable any warning messages and avoid being caught.

I flex my hands, cracking the knuckles, and take a deep breath. Then I begin.

It doesn't take a genius to locate and begin to hack the high-tech security cameras they have installed at the Mafia headquarters. They're too high-tech for their own good, really - something simpler I wouldn't have been able to hack from this distance because of the range, but I could hack this one from the other side of Tokyo. It's time to take over Gevanni's job for him. I override our own systems and link the Mafia cameras up to the screens in the old surveillance room where I was hiding, so I can watch them at my leisure. Then it's just a case of watching and waiting.

I've read Arik the Viking's files, so I know what he looks like, and I know he must have an office somewhere in the building. After that all it takes is to locate it and hack my way in through the security system so that I don't set off any alarms. Sure enough, after a few hours one of the cameras picks him up, heading through an unmarked door. Unmarked - that's clever. Even if the police were to break in they wouldn't find his name anywhere. They would have to search the building to find his office. Unfortunately for him, I'm not the police.

I quickly create a map from the front door to Arik's office, and print it off, folding it and putting it in a pocket with my cigarettes. The next task is the security system. From what I can see, there are three points I'll need to disable: the back door access, the lift controls, and the entrance to the office itself. First, though, I need to be a lot closer to the building. There's no use hacking a system if you can't get in and out of the building before it resets.

Today is no use; Arik is already on the way out for the night. I will have to start tomorrow, which means breaking out of this building while Near is awake and alert. It's not going to be easy, but I never expected any part of this case to be. Besides, I'm willing to risk everything to get Mello back in one piece.

* * *

MELLO

After what must be hours I feel myself growing calmer. This situation will not be made any better if I have a breakdown now. The fear is there, yes, of course it is, and I don't think I'll ever get away from it, but at least I can try to ignore it, or work alongside it. I keep working on the rope, always working, trying to twist and turn my way out of it. It's so tight. I can feel the rope burns on my wrists, but just like the fear I push the pain to one side and concentrate on what I have to do. I'm almost at the brink of giving up, it's taking so long, but when I think of that door and the bombs and the fire I get enough energy to keep going again.

Eventually I feel the rope fall away from one side, and I realise that I've done it; it's loose. Pulling harder, quicker than before now that I know I've won, the rest of it drops to the floor and I finally pull my hands around in front of me again, massaging my aching and cramped muscles and rubbing the red marks left by the rope. At least I'm unrestrained. That's one big step towards getting out of here.

After a few moments I stand up, taking stock of my surroundings as I turn in a full circle. It's almost completely dark in the warehouse, I think it must be the middle of the night outside. At least that means that no one is probably going to come round here looking for me without drawing attention to themselves, with torches and lights, and noise instead of the utter stillness that surrounds me right now. Maybe if I know they're coming I can warn them, get them to stop before they open the door and kill both themselves and me. No, I can't think about that. I don't want to think about that. Not about the bombs.

I look around a little more but it's so dark I can't tell what I'm looking at. The small amount of light I do have only makes things more confusing, weird half-shapes created by shadows looming on every wall, and I decide I can't do anything yet. I sit down on the chair. Then, reconsidering, I lay down on the floor with my hands behind my head, and close my eyes. It's cold in here, but I need to sleep so that I can think straight in the morning. Too many crazy things have happened since I was last asleep, and even then I wasn't really asleep but unconscious. I start to drift away, calming myself with thoughts of Matt and cigarette smoke and a striped shirt.

When I wake up, shivering, it is morning and the pale light of dawn is just visible in that high window. It is too high and thin for me to reach even with the chair, and even if I could get to it I can see the silhouette of a wire stretching across it. It would blow the whole place if I so much as attempted to smash it.

I go to the door, but the tell-tale disappearing wire shows me that the door is rigged on both sides - even if I managed to hold it still on this side and kick the door outwards, the wire on the outside would trigger the bomb and I'd die just the same. The walls themselves are sturdy and there's no way I could, for instance, kick my way out or throw the chair against the walls to break them. Out of options, I sit down again, sinking into despair. How can I ever get out of here?

* * *

A/N: Alright folks, that's all for this chapter. Let me know your thoughts, and hang around for chapter sixteen.


	17. A Lesson in What Must Be Done: Viaduct

A/N: Looks like I'm on fire - we've arrived, finally, at the penultimate chapter. That's right, the end is nigh! Send me your best guesses about Kira if you think you know who it is and how. This chapter's title was provided, as ever, by jjwitdaheydiddydiddy.

* * *

Chapter Seventeen: Viaduct

MATT

I can't sleep, I'm too wired. I just want to get going. There's no use laying around in bed just thinking about it, tormenting myself. I have to do something, however small.

Everyone has left the HQ for the night, except of course for those who live here, so the investigation room is empty and dark. After checking the cameras just in case someone stayed behind, I head down there, flicking on the lights to look around.

It seems strange to me, to have watched this place for so long and yet not have set foot in here ever since I "returned" to England. This is where Mello sits, I think, running my hand over the top of a chair back. I look at his computer, the monitor dull and silent. There is dust forming over the screen. Sighing, I turn away and browse through the files lying on top of the various desks, covered with printed information and scrawled notes in the distinct handwriting of each member of the team - Aizawa, Near, Gevanni, Lidner, Lester, even Mello and Yamamoto. Nothing from Matsuda, though. I remember seeing him leaf through a drawer under his desk and idly go to open it, but it is locked.

That really makes me wonder. Why would anyone lock a drawer, when the investigation room itself is secure? Breaking and entering in a physical sense isn't really my style, but a couple of years ago Mello taught me some really interesting things about credit cards and hairpins. It's short work to open the drawer - as expected, the lock is not the most difficult to open, being as it is that most outsiders would have extreme difficulty even getting into the building.

Inside are piles of neatly ordered paper, and pulling them onto the desk to sift through them I realise they are the original copies of the faxed files I saw on Aizawa's desk. However, the first few are fresh, clearly only put in there today. With a kind of morbid fascination I glance down the list of criminals, wanting to see who will die next. Strangely, the very bottom line of every page has been torn off, but comparing them with the faxes it seems that the pages may have been a little too long, so that Matsuda was forced to shorten them before faxing. Funny, it would have been easier just to use different paper, or to type the names up and then email them. Ah, well. Such is the intellect of Matsuda.

There is also a blank sheet of paper in the drawer with a date on the bottom - five days from now, in fact. How curious; I wonder what such a note could refer to? I replace all the full sheets in the drawer and close and lock it, then realise I've left the blank sheet on the desk, like the fool I've been accusing Matsuda of being. It's hard not to be a little distracted at a time like this. God, I could do with a smoke.

The biggest screen on the wall suddenly flickers into life, making me jump. The flickering image suddenly displayed upon it is that of the building's entrance, and the shadowy figure of what looks like Aizawa is shown heading across the lobby. Ah, yes. The automatic cameras, complete with motion and sound detection, just in case someone should attempt to break in. It's just as well I was here; I would have forgotten to switch them off. Since Aizawa will be coming straight upstairs, I hurry out of the room, turning the light off as I go, and into the lift to the safety of my own floor. Only then do I realise I'm still holding the blank paper I took from Matsuda's drawer. It's too late now; I can only hope he doesn't realise.

I set up all of my equipment again, and link up to the mainframe, stretching my fingers in anticipation. I watch as all the members of the team arrive in the office, waiting for them all to settle in so that I can slip away while they remain in the room.

Matsuda, however, instantly becomes a problem. He starts rifling around in his drawer, looking concerned and worried and then almost desperate. He goes over his own desk and then Aizawa's, and stands scratching his head. Through the video link-up on my laptop I hear Aizawa ask what is wrong with him.

"Have you seen a blank piece of paper? I set it up specially," Matsuda says. "It was in my drawer, I'm sure."

"What do you mean, set it up?" Aizawa asks, with a touch of suspicion.

"Well, all the criminals have been dying about five days after they were on the news, right? So I wrote down what will be the date in five days' time on the bottom of the sheet, for reference." Matsuda explains, and Aizawa shrugs.

"No, I didn't see it. Just start a new sheet." He says carelessly, and Matsuda nods and turns away, though an expression of worry once more crosses his face before he sits down at his desk.

That was a tense moment. If Near had overheard and decided that someone must have entered the office after dark, he would have ordered some sort of search, and I wouldn't have been able to leave. Thank God for sensible Aizawa and his lack of patience with Matsuda.

I think everyone's settled in now, so I check the map I made yesterday, check that I still remember the route through the building. It's likely I'll have to rush when I'm there, especially with the possibility of Mafia men chasing me through the corridors, so it's essential I don't make any mistakes or wrong turnings once I'm inside.

To be closer to that building, though, first I have to get out of this one. Pay attention, kids, this is why I have a good reputation as a hacker. Getting through one of L's systems isn't easy, but if anyone can do it, well… it's me. I don't wish to blow my own horn or anything like that, but I'm pretty damn good at this stuff.

I have to work really fast with this one, but also be careful not to make any mistakes. If I do, it could cost me the whole operation - if Near finds out I'm doing this I have no doubt he'll take away my equipment so that I'm a prisoner again.

I don't want to bore you with the details, and if I'm honest only super-nerds like myself would understand most of the process anyway, so let's just skip the process and say quite simply that I made it. That's right, I made it. I beat the system and left the building. That's because I'm the _best_ there _is_, motherfucker. Hell if I'm not. Lighting up a victory cigarette I stroll over to the taxi ranks about a block away, carrying my laptop in a briefcase and some money in my pocket, along with my lighter. My cigarette packet and some chocolate on the other side, and a gun inside the waistband of my jeans. I reckon I'm pretty well prepared for whatever is going to happen here.

Once inside the taxi I give the driver the address of a place a few doors down from the Mafia headquarters. The last thing I want to do is arouse suspicion before I even get there. I'll bet there aren't that many people, even within the Mafia, who would come straight out and ask for that address.

He drops me off at the kerb, and I pay him quickly, waiting for him to leave before I sidle into an alleyway between two buildings and open my laptop. I check that my programs are still in place and haven't been detected, then disable the camera system and switch to the alarm settings to turn them off. Excellent. Putting the laptop away, I walk through the main entrance of the building with an air of confidence.

"Excuse me, sir?" A pretty young receptionist attempts to stop me, but I brandish the briefcase and shake my head.

"I know where I'm going," I say, "Just got a little delivery, you know?"

She glances towards the cameras and nods, obviously thinking that if I'm in the wrong place the heavies will be alerted and stop me. Little does she know that the cameras are currently showing yesterday's footage to the security guards.

This is laughably easy. Maybe I should become a professional. Mello would love that. He could be the inside man, although after a while a guy with a scar on his face might start to become well-known in certain areas. Ha, it's funny how the mind works in situations like this. I need to focus on the actual job at hand, not daydream about some kind of badass con team.

I don't knock on the door of the office, I simply open it and step inside. Arik is there at his desk, and he looks up, paused halfway through signing a cheque. He frowns slightly, and lifts a pistol lying on his desk the smallest amount, as if to indicate that he could well lift it further if not satisfied with my explanation.

I show the pistol I've carried here and a look of at least partial understanding comes over his face. He indicates a chair in front of the desk, but instead of taking it I put the briefcase down on it and lean over him, my hands on the edge of the smooth wooden surface.

"I don't have time to mess around." I say. "You're going to tell me what you've done with Mello. Dieter Durnström, as you knew him."

Arik pauses a moment, and a pleasant smile spreads across his face. He leans back in his chair, folding his arms on the desk casually. "Why didn't you say so?" He half-laughs. "Nothing simpler!"

"What?" I'm taken aback. I didn't expect him to _want_ to tell me.

"Listen, it's all very well scaring him, isn't it? He won't be back. But all the same, I don't really want an incriminating corpse in my own warehouse. So, since you so kindly wish to save him, I don't see why I should stop you."

I'm suspicious, but… can I really afford to be?

"Where is he, then?" I ask. Arik takes a piece of paper and scrawls an address across it in spiky letters, in the English alphabet instead of Japanese characters. So, he recognises my accent.

"This is where you'll find him. He's just tied to a chair, the door isn't locked. It should be no hassle for you to retrieve him."

"Th-thanks," I stutter, a little bemused. The strong stance I had at first evaporates in my doubt. I take the paper and stare at it dumbly.

"Close the door on the way out, won't you? There's an awful draft comes through the windows in the corridor sometimes."

Still confused and shaken, I leave the office and then the building, frowning. This has all been very strange. Hailing a cab, I ask for the estate where the warehouse is placed, and try and make some sense of what is happening.

* * *

MELLO

It's so quiet here. There are so many warehouses around, I already know the area, and most of them are empty. The tiny slice of sky I can see through the window is half taken up by the shadow of another roof, but no one comes here any more. I suppose it's a good thing. I'd rather starve than have someone stumble in here by accident. It's a shame they didn't leave me a gun or a knife or some poison, to save me the slow agony of that death; but I suppose slow agony is what they wanted, isn't it? You don't cross the Mafia. It's a lesson you only get one chance to learn.

It must be my imagination - I suppose I'm becoming delirious already - but faintly I seem to hear Matt's voice. I sink into his memory, closing my eyes with a smile. At least I have that to see me through to the end. Maybe if I get delirious enough I'll imagine he's in here with me, and it won't seem so bad at all to die. I wish I could have seen him one last time. There's never enough time in the world, is there? We're always taking for granted that there'll be another day to say "I love you", but in the end there isn't, not every time, and before you know it the chance is gone. At least he knows how I feel about him. That's some comfort.

I lift my head sharply, quite sure this time that I heard his voice again. Can a hallucination be so real? He's getting louder, calling my name, and -

I get up and run to the door, and shout his name back at him, desperately, hoping against hope that it isn't my imagination. If I could just speak to him, one last time! That's all I need!

"Mello?!" His voice is on the other side of the door now - I could almost cry with relief.

"Yes! Yes, I'm here! Matt, I'm in here, and -"

"Stay back from the door, he said it wasn't locked, I'll get you out of there -"

"NO!"

I hear his feet shuffle slightly, as if he had begun to move away and then changed his mind.

"Why not?"

"There's a bomb, Matt. Wired all the way around the door, and the window, and even the walls. Don't open the door. It'll kill us both."

There is a silence on the other side of the door, and then Matt lets out a long breath.

"Jesus, Mells. You're always getting yourself into the hardest situations, you know that?"

* * *

A/N: Whew, it's heating up towards the conclusion. Stay tuned, as they say!


	18. A Lesson in What Must Be Done:Revelation

A/N: And here we are, at last. I had only two correct guesses, but now for everyone else here is the answer. The chapter's title was suggested by Guardian of Courage.

* * *

Chapter Seventeen: Revelation

MATT

Alright, Matty boy. Stay calm now. So the guy you love is in a warehouse rigged with bombs that could blow him skyward, so what? This isn't even a boss level, you've faced worse than this. Come on now, stay focused.

"Alright," I say, taking a deep breath. "I want you to listen very closely and carefully to what I say. First of all, we need to locate the bombs."

"They're on the ceiling." Mello's muffled voice is hopeless, resigned. "I can't reach them."

"That's alright." I reply, trying to reassure him. "We don't need to reach them. We can deal with this. Just do everything as I tell you to and don't panic, alright? Can you do that?"

There is a pause, and then Mello replies, "Yes."

So we start. Sometimes I'm really glad we were involved in all that illegal stuff before we turned detective. It's reassuring, knowing how to open locks and hack security cameras and disarm bombs. It means you can get out of nearly any situation, especially if you're a smooth talker (though that's more Mells' department than mine). I talk him through it, slowly and steadily, relying on wire colours and a sharp piece of metal from a broken chair, taking our time because time could well be all we have. Then it's done and there's only one way to know whether it worked or not.

"Mells," I say, my hand on the door, just getting ready to open it, "Just in case we die… I love you, right?"

"Yeah, I love you too, Matt."

"And, you know, for the record, it's almost better this way, if we both die at once, together."

"I know. But… I think we've still got a few years of happiness left owed to us, at least."

"Yeah." I take a deep breath, wipe my hand on my leg to dry my palms and steady myself. "Well, here goes."

I turn the handle and push the door inwards, holding my breath all the while, and look into Mello's pale and worried face, and let the breath out in a great sigh of relief. We did it. He's safe.

The first thing we do, for a long time, is just to hold each other, almost crying, just feeling happy to be together and to be alive on a day like this. But the world doesn't stop turning, not even for a perfect romance story. It has to go on, and so we can't stay that way forever. There's a case that needs solving.

"We'd better get back to headquarters," I tell Mello. "I kind of left without permission, and besides which, I think I know who Kira is."

"You do?!" Mello's surprise is almost hurtful, except that I know he's just surprised at himself for not also knowing.

"I think so." I reply. "Just like L, you know? I'm ninety-nine per cent certain."

"But by one per cent, you could be wrong."

"Exactly. So come on, let's go find some proof, yeah?"

We head back to the bemused taxi driver - whose meter has run up quite a cost by now - and head back into the heart of Tokyo, drinking in every sight and sound as if we've never seen them before. Every near miss is like a rebirth. Being in the kind of work where death is a frequent occupational hazard, you get to appreciate life and everything it brings. Tokyo today is like a jewel.

At headquarters, Near is waiting for us in a not-particularly-worried kind of way, as I suppose we expected. He certainly didn't send anyone out after me, though I suspect he knew as soon as I was gone. Everyone is working in the investigation room as normal, as if nothing has happened. Why should they think that anything has?

When we enter the room, though, looking tired and, in Mello's case, a little grubby, all work ceases, and the members of the team look at us and then greet us with unconcealed astonishment. Most of them didn't even know I was still in Japan. But I watch carefully, looking for the telltale signs of guilt in the one I suspect.

In the taxi on the way over I explained it all to Mello without telling exactly who, and he thinks I'm right. He said it matches up to what Arik told him. I don't know if he'll feel the same way when he hears who I'm about to accuse, but we'll see.

"There's no time for explanations right now." I say, cutting through a hubbub of questions that have risen up around us. "We have something important to deal with. We have found out the true identity of Kira."

I'm carefully flick my eyes around the room as I speak, resting on my suspect for just a moment; and in that moment I see the barest flicker of fear. I'm right. I have to be.

"Then who is it?" Near asks in a dull tone, as if expecting me to give him a ridiculously unfounded answer and embarrass myself. No such luck, Near.

"The new Kira is one of us." I announce, confidently. "I have the evidence - and he knows I have taken it, because he has been unable to find it in the place where he left it. The new Kira is Matsuda Touta."

* * *

MATSUDA

It's all over. Itsuki, Light, forgive me. I have failed.

There is silence in the investigation room. I know I am caught. He has the papers. There is no sense in denying it, says the voice that follows me, and it is right.

"Matsuda?" Aizawa asks, and I turn my eyes towards him, almost numb now that the reckoning has come.

"Yes." I admit. "It's true."

"But - Yamamoto - !" Lidner bursts out.

"Yes." I nod. "I killed him."

"So you never loved him at all." Mello says, dangerously low, glaring at me with intense hatred. But he is wrong. I sigh, knowing I must explain myself fully before they will understand.

"Let me tell you from the beginning." I say. "I don't wish to be misunderstood. At first I was just a normal member of the police force, trying to forget about Kira and all that horror. But then I found a Death Note on the doorstep of my home."

"Your doorstep?" Near repeats. "So it was left there for you?"

"So it seems." I nod, then hesitate, glancing behind me at the figure looming in the corner of the room, holding the Death Note it gave to me. "My… shinigami was very particular that I should be the one to use it."

"Is he here, now?" Matt asks, and I nod, but I know what he will ask and it cannot be allowed.

"I don't have any pages left. He keeps them. So I'm sorry, but I can't help you to see him."

"Continue with the story." Near tells me, like an impatient child, and I nod.

"As soon as I saw it, I was inspired. I had always agreed with Light's vision of a better world. I wanted to carry on his work, to do it properly. I wanted to fight crime in a way that my own detective skills would never allow. I wanted to make everything safe! Especially now that I had Itsuki - Yamamoto to you - and I knew that more than anything, I wanted to protect my loved ones. So I started. Then when Matt was supposed to go to England, I brought him back and showed him to the secret rooms upstairs. That's when you started to find the letters, right? On the chess pieces and apples and cards… it was his idea. My shinigami's. He told me what to write on them and how to keep them clean. We planted them together, and then since he didn't show up on the cameras anyway he showed me how to loop the footage and hide myself. That's how we planted them. We wanted to scare you, to make you think that you weren't safe any more so that you would make mistakes in the investigation.

"But all the time, I was killing. Every evening I would write a little note on the bottom of a sheet of Death Note paper, with a date, that was the right amount of time away from when I would be writing down the names. In this way, as I wrote down the names of criminals from the news programs and noted the time that the program was shown, I condemned them all to die on the same day at the same time. That was another part of his plan to scare you, because you would find so many deaths at once that it might overwhelm you, instead of one death every hour or so on.

"Then I had to pass the names over to you, Chief Aizawa. This was simple. First I folded over the edge so that the note I had written could not be seen, and then I faxed it to you, with the pretext of creating a second copy so we both could refer back to older sheets. After the deaths had taken place I carefully ripped this edge off and threw it away, so that the evidence was no longer visible. You never touched the Death Note paper or saw the dates, so you never suspected a thing. I locked the paper into the drawer of my desk to keep them safe from prying eyes, though I see that this was no useful precaution against Matt."

"And Yamamoto?" Mello demands. "If you did all of this to protect him, why did you kill him? You make no sense."

I sigh, misery enveloping me again. "Having to kill Itsuki is my greatest regret." I say quietly. "I miss him very much each day, knowing we will never be together again. But by this time I had realised that the cause of Kira is bigger than me or Itsuki or Light Yagami or L. It is for the good of the entire world. Once Itsuki discovered my secret he would not listen to me or my justifications. He demanded that I hand myself in, and if I did not he would arrest me. It took me just a moment to write down his name. I… I genuinely grieved him. Please do not believe that my love for him was anything less than real and absolute. Just as I have sacrificed my soul for the Death Note, so I sacrificed him for the greater good."

"The greater good." Matt repeats, sounding sickened. "How is murder _ever_ for the greater good?"

I keep silent as the others begin to discuss things over my head. My shinigami is approaching closer, but he knows as well as I do that I can no longer help him.

"Matsuda." Matt says suddenly, with a note of gravity and finality in his voice. "I want you to listen very carefully and answer this question with as much honesty as you can. For the sake of Itsuki, tell me. Was Light Yagami involved in this in any way?"

I glance behind me at the shinigami, but I already know what he is writing. I have no time to answer. I look imploringly around the room, but already I feel the signs: the pain in my arm, breathlessness, my chest pounding as if to break. It will break. I fall but do not feel the floor.

* * *

MELLO

We all know, all of us, that there is no point in trying to bring Matsuda back, but Aizawa tries anyway. I guess as a policeman it's a natural instinct. But there's no coming back from a Death Note heart attack.

Near is staring at the body, no expression on his face except a small, almost unnoticeable amount of chagrin. We've beaten him, that's why. Not because Matsuda was Kira or because it was under his nose or because he died before justice could be done, but because we beat him. That's Near for you. Childish little fucker.

I'm not gonna rub his face in it, though. He knows and we know and everyone in this room knows that we beat him. That we're better than him. In fact, my keeping quiet about it should wind him up even more, being such a humble action and all. And the world is safe, hurray hurray. The strangest thing about a victory like this is that no one will report our names or announce our success. The Kira fear will slowly ebb away, as before. People will begin to forget, as before. Nothing has really changed in the world. No matter what temporary punishment is introduced, as soon as it is taken away, people will behave just as they always did. That's why someone like Kira could never last.

No matter what happens now, though, it's over here. The case is solved, and Kira is gone, for now at least. I sling an arm around Matt's shoulder, pulling his attention away from what is now a crime scene.

"Hey, Matty babe," I say, grinning my extra-special cheesiest grin, "Wanna go home?"

* * *

A/N: As usual, extended authors' note is coming shortly, reviews much appreciated, as well as questions, concerns, and suggestions.


	19. Author's Note

Notes On A Crime Scene: 2

Well, here we are again! After seven months (seven months!) of Kriminalist II it's all at an end, and though I've thoroughly enjoyed it I have to admit I'm glad to have my free time back :D

First of all, thank you to everyone who reviewed, your thoughts were very helpful to me. Especially to those who suggested words for the chapter titles - Svadilfari, jjwitdaheydiddydiddy, TheColourBlue, arekuzanra, Lfangirl28, Ichimaru-Taichou, Guardian of Courage, and angellovedark.

It's been a great ride, even if there have been times I've stressed about not getting the chapters out on time - and thanks for sticking with me even when I didn't! As for what's next, I think a little break is in order, at least until I get to uni and don't have to work any more. The subject of my next fanfic… I haven't decided yet :) Of course, feel free to drop me a line if there's a pairing or fandom you'd like to see, my "like" list is in my profile. I'd also like to say that I'd enjoy working on a collaboration with anyone, so if you think you'd be interested in working together then please don't hesitate to suggest it.

Aside from that… I guess til next time, it's goodnight and good luck! Keep reading and keep writing ;)

~ Narni4eva


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